Granger Family Secret: Hermione The Werewolf
by EclecticKnight88
Summary: (Re-Post) Hermione Jean Granger had spent her whole life thinking she was muggleborn but the summer after her 4th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry exposes family secrets that Hermione never dreamed possible. And what's this about an arranged marriage?
1. Prologue: The Attack

**Hermione the Werewolf: Granger Family Secrets.**

_A/N: _I don't own Harry Potter.

_Summary: _First in the series.

Everyone in the Magical World, including herself, thought that Hermione Granger was muggleborn.

She is not.

Just before she is set to join the Weasley family at the Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, Hermione is attacked. Her survival instincts kick in, but not the kind she was expecting.

Join Hermione, Harry and the whole gang as she unravels the secrets of her family's past, secrets her parents had hoped would never come to light.

WARNING: Opening chapter may be a bit distressing for some readers. Read at own discretion.

**Prologue: The Attack**

As she looked at her watch for what felt like the millionth time, Hermione Granger saw with great relief that it was getting closer to being picked up by Mr. Weasley to go to the Burrow. Despite the churning feeling of unease stirring in the pit of her stomach, Hermione was both happy and sad. Happy because she was missing her best friends and the Weasleys but she wished that she could spend more time with her parents. Not that they were actually here right now, they were at some fancy dinner conference for work. Even with her being deemed the brightest witch of age; Hermione couldn't understand why Dentists had fancy dinner conferences in hotels. Luckily she was able to get out of going this time round, with a huge thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Weasley.

With everything else done, Hermione proceeds to roam through her childhood home as the sinking feeling of fear begins to stir in the pit of her stomach.

"Why did You-Know-Who have to come back?" Hermione thought to herself.

As the feeling of fear began to stir and twist, almost like a snake, Hermione felt the fear forming as a lump in her throat. Which is why when Crookshanks brushed his tail against her leg, Hermione couldn't help but scream? Looking down she saw her trusted companion staring up at with his intelligent eyes.

"Crookshanks don't do that!" Hermione gasped out in relief.

As she bends down to pick up her cat, Hermione doesn't see the dark figure standing at the window. Until she straightens up that is.

Another scream erupts from Hermione's throat, this time one of pure terror. With Crookshanks still firmly in her grasp, Hermione is too terrified to move as the stranger just continues to stare at her. It was a staring contest, until the stranger nodded. Once, twice, three times. Before Hermione could become confused by this new behaviour, arms wrap themselves firmly around her frame causing Hermione to drop Crookshanks.

Hermione immediately began to struggle, causing her capture to increase his hold on her.

"HELP!" Hermione screamed as loud as she could, knowing that if this had been a prank from the Weasley Twins they would have let go by now.

As soon as her first scream was released, the intruder put a hand over her mouth. Not that this stopped her from screaming, it was just simply muffled.

Her heart was racing as she threw her body left to right, desperately trying to break free. The next time she threw her body to the right, Hermione saw with increasing dread that the stranger from the window wasn't outside any more. He was inside.

"Can't you shut the little bitch up? I prefer to get my revenge without her struggling," the man in front of her snarled.

Looking down she saw that his hands were undoing his belt.

Her heart rate tripled.

She had to escape; she would _not_ give him what he wanted. Not unless she was dead.

Blood rushed in her ears, sounding like a tidal wave and then...pain.

Blinding, black out worthy pain.

A new scream erupted from deep within her as the pain took hold.

Another scream joined hers, but it was deeper...she had been dropped onto the floor, on her hands and knees. Screaming, screaming and then...

**A/N: Due to a possible chapter mix up later on I have re-edited and re-loaded the story.**


	2. 01: Gruesome Discoveries

**WARNING: Distressing details at the start of the Chapter, if you wish to avoid skip ahead. You have been warned.**

**Chapter 1: Gruesome & Unsuspecting Discoveries.**

The street was quiet as the half moon hung in the sky amidst a sea of cloud and stars. That is until a series of cracks could be heard, though everyone just took it to be the sound of car trouble. They never would have guessed that a group of seven people had just magically appeared in a neighbour's back garden, not unless they happened to be looking out their bedroom windows at the time.

"Blasted muggles, don't they go to bed at a decent hour anymore?" A voice growled in annoyance.

"It is Friday night Alastor, some muggles like to go out and have fun." Another voice replied to the first.

"Don't get cute with me, Lupin." Alastor growled.

A series of soft chuckles circled the group at Alastor's words, though there were two that weren't laughing. Alastor and Lupin but it wasn't because neither of them had a sense of humour. Well, one couldn't help but wonder when it came to Alastor Moody. But tonight while Lupin's body went rigged after inhaling deeply through his nose, Alastor, thanks to his magical eye, had a look of pure horror on his gnarled and aged face.

"What in the name of Merlin?" Alastor gasped out in horror, his face now whiter than the whitest paint.

The five clueless companions went still with fear; it took a great deal to terrify an Auror as skilled and fearless as Alastor Moody.

"What is it, Moody?" A young female voice asked, her voice shaking slightly.

"I can smell blood, lots of it." Lupin spoke, his voice hard and cold.

"It's times like this when I wish I didn't have this cursed magical eye of mine." Alastor said, his voice sounding rather faint.

Lupin turned his own scared face towards the retired Auror and looked at him questioningly.

"What are you seeing, Alastor? Doesn't sugar coat it, like I said, I smell the blood." Lupin demanded

Alastor swallowed the bile that threatened to break free.

"Bodies, can't say how many as they've all been ripped apart." Alastor whispered.

Without waiting for anyone else, Lupin charged in. Hermione was like a younger version of himself with her love of books and knowledge, why, he often found himself these days picturing a daughter just like her.

"Remus!" Several voices hissed urgently.

"Don't be a fool man!" A deep smooth voice spoke as he ripped down his hood.

"There's only one moving body in that house, Kingsley. Two if you count the cat, Granger's alive." Alastor said, his voice still sounding rather faint.

After magically forcing his way into the house, Lupin stepped into the kitchen and felt his wolf stirring with rage. The blood was everywhere, literally. Blood on the walls, kitchen counters and the ceiling, while the bodies lay mangled, beaten and almost decapitated on the floor. One particular man was lying by the fridge, his neck so badly severed it reminded Lupin of Nearly Headless Nick, his brown eyes empty of life but still filled with pure horror.

"What's happened here?" Lupin thought to himself.

"Hermione!" Lupin hissed urgently.

_Meow_

Lupin looked down and saw Crookshanks, whom was also drenched in blood; he quickly knelt down as he felt the wolf within slamming against the proverbial cage, desperately trying to escape.

"Where is Hermione?" Lupin growled softly, allowing some of the wolf to sneak through.

Crookshanks, being a cat obviously couldn't answer, took off in the direction of the living room. Lupin followed the animal closely, not bothering to look round when his companions entered the house. Nor when they gasped in horror and he didn't look round when the sound of scrambling feet went back out the door and was soon followed by the sound of vomit hitting the grass. Lupin's attention was focused only on Hermione and making sure she was okay.

Entering the living room, Lupin stopped at the sight before him, for there cowering in the corner was Hermione. Naked and terrified.

Inhaling deeply he discovered two things, first she didn't seem to have any injuries of her own and second she was a werewolf.

"Hermione," Lupin whispered softly so as not to scare her.

She looked up at him as soon as she heard him speak. Her eyes wide filled with horror and her mouth, much to Lupin's horror, had blood around it.

"I...they..." Hermione tried but she couldn't speak.

"Cover her up you fool!" Moony snarled in his mind.

Without needing to be told twice and cursing himself for not thinking of it sooner, Lupin quickly removed his jacket and cautiously knelt down in front of his former student and wrapped it around her frame. She sniffled as her arms began to desperately cling to the safety of the jacket.

"Hermione, you need to try and tell me what happened. Were they Death Eaters?" Lupin asked, though he suspected that they weren't. Had they been, then their current conversation wouldn't be happening.

She shook her head in 'no'.

"Oh my..." The female's voice suddenly spoke.

Hermione scurried further into the wall at the sound, as though desperately wishing for the wall to open up and swallow her whole.

"Tonks! You're scaring her!" Lupin hissed viciously over his shoulder.

Lupin returned his attentions to the now newly young wolf before him.

"Hermione, listen to me. I know more than anyone else in this room how terrified you are right now but I give you my word, you will _not_ go through this alone. Not while I draw breath." Lupin told her firmly but softly.

She had no idea how it happened, had no clue what was going on with her or how it managed to happen. All Hermione did know was that Lupin was sincere and an Alpha, a mentor now in things other than Defence against the Dark Arts.

"They...they were going to rape me." Hermione choked out as tears began to fall as if her eyes were their very own waterfall.

Lupin and his wolf both growled.

"And they call us monsters!" Moony snarled in Lupin's mind

"Said it was revenge." Hermione added with a sob.

"Revenge?" Lupin questioned confused. "For wha

t?" He asked her.

She merely shook her head left to right in a frantic no.

"Pain...and then the world became different. I...their blood..." Hermione gasped out between sobs.

"Poor little cub, she should not know such horrors so young." Moony whispered sadly while Lupin himself promptly took her into his arms to protect her.

"You are safe now little cub, I promise." Lupin/Moony said softly.

Lupin sensed the others had now come into the living room.

"Remus?" Arthur Weasley's voice choked out. "Is she hurt?" He asked, his instincts as father screamed at him to bring the culprits back to life so he could kill them again. But then there was also intense guilt, why hadn't they come sooner? She would have been safe from such an evil act.

"Physically, she is just bruised a little." Lupin replied.

"Pity we can't kill them again. Vile filth deserves it and so much more." Moony seethed in Lupin's mind.

"Remus, she can't stay here. Not now, we'll clear this up. You should take her upstairs so Tonks can help her get cleaned up." Kingsley told him, his voice barely above a whisper.

At the suggestion of being left alone with a complete stranger, Hermione's grip on Lupin tightened. Her mind screaming one thing again and again, a song stuck on repeat.

"Safe with Alpha. Safe with the Alpha." Her thoughts swirled.

"Ssh, it's okay little cub. I'll be outside the room the entire time, Tonks will not harm you. She will protect you." Lupin whispered softly.

"Promise?" Hermione whispered.

"I promise." Lupin replied firmly. "So does Tonks, right Tonks!" Lupin said over his shoulder.

"I promise." Tonks replied her voice while for the most part strong held a hint of fear within it.

Lupin waited patiently before finally Hermione nodded against his chest. As soon as she did, Lupin swept her up into his arms, shielding her eyes from the destruction her wolf had created for survival and took her upstairs, Tonks was hot on his heels, though maintained some distance so as not to make Hermione scared of her.

Once Lupin, Hermione and Tonks headed upstairs, the five remaining wizards stared into space.

"We should have been here sooner," Arthur whispered, his voice pained.

"The only thing we can do now is clear this up and help her through what has happened." Alastor said, his voice still lacking the usual growl. "I must send word to Albus, inform him of this..." Alastor added before his voice trailed off, unsure what to call it before leaving the house the same way he came in.

The room was again silent before an unspoken decision to start cleaning up was reached and along with Arthur, the three remaining wizards began the gruesome task. They worked in silence, uttering their incantations barely above a whisper but came to a stop when Alastor returned to the kitchen.

"Albus is on his way with McGonagall and Snape." Alastor told them.

A vicious snarl of rage was released from upstairs causing them to rush upstairs only to be met with a very livid looking Lupin.

"I will not allow that _man_ near her!" He growled.

The gathered party at the bottom of the stairs tensed, they had never heard Lupin speak so defiant and viciously before.

"Remus, calm yourself," the voice of Albus Dumbledore said gently as he, along with McGonagall and Snape moved into the hallway.

"I knew it was only a matter of time before you ruined someone's life Lupin." Snape sneered at him.

Lupin snarled again before launching himself at the Potions Master, pinning him to the wall.

"DON'T talk about things you do not understand human! The young cub has been a werewolf since birth, it is only because she was in grave danger that the wolf was unleashed," Lupin hissed through his teeth before a cruel sneer came to his mouth "unless, you and your fellow Death Eaters engage in rape before you kill innocents." Lupin finished.

McGonagall went white in horror and gasped as her hands went to her mouth, the action caught Lupin's attention.

"Minerva, you are a maternal figure to little cub, could you please join Tonks and help take care of little cub?" Lupin asked her.

McGonagall nodded before cautiously heading towards the stairs, before she began to climb the stairs, McGonagall turned her head a little towards Lupin.

"They didn't..." She tried but couldn't stomach finishing the question.

"No, as I said. Her wolf was unleashed, hence the mess in the kitchen. That filth deserved a fate far worse than what she delivered, but not at the cost of her soul." Lupin replied, his growl slowly fading.

McGonagall nodded before heading up to Hermione's room.

Once the door closed with a soft snap, silence filled the hallway.

"Remus let Severus go." Dumbledore instructed sternly.

Before complying Lupin couldn't help but notice with relish that Snape had become equally horrified by his words and his actions.

Before another word could be exchanged however, the lights from a car lit up the hall way and was soon followed by the sound of a car engine being turned off. The new arrival put everyone, especially Lupin, on full alert. Lupin inhaled deeply through his nose and found that they were muggles. As he picked up the scents, Lupin wondered once more why nobody bothered to ask him to check if someone was who they appeared to be? Being a werewolf he is able to sense if there is Polyjuice potion in someone's system.

"Hide." Lupin said firmly.

Nobody, not even Dumbledore and Snape, argued with him.

As Lupin pressed himself against the kitchen wall, he found himself and his wolf agitated. The muggles that were coming closer to the house were Mr & Mrs Granger but Lupin could tell from their scents one very crucial detail.

They were not werewolves and therefore _not_ Hermione's biological parents.

**A/N: There is the second chapter.**


	3. 02: Confessions

**Chapter 2: Confessions Part 1**

Once Lupin had stepped outside the room and closed the door, Hermione couldn't help but feel afraid despite his promise that the young woman called Tonks wouldn't harm her.

"It's alright, I am not gonna hurt yah. Though that probably don't mean much right now..." Tonks said softly.

Tonks watched the scared teen as she clutched tighter at Lupin's jacket.

"Why don't we get you into a nice hot shower?" Tonks suggested, forcing cheerfulness into her voice.

But Hermione simply stayed on her bed, knees pressed tightly to her chest. Tonks swallowed back the desire to cry, though she didn't know the teenager before her, Tonks hated seeing her so afraid. What was worse is that Tonks suspected that Hermione was afraid of Tonks and herself. Tonks thought quickly, how was she going to proof to Hermione that her world wasn't coming to an end?

"Given that You-Know-Who's back I doubt I'll get anywhere." Tonks thought to herself feeling rather stupid at the idea.

The two stayed in the uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before the sounds of a snarl on the other side of the door had them jumping out of their skins.

"W-what was that?" Hermione asked her voice and body shaking in fear, her eyes shooting to the door.

"Lupin, something must have pissed him off." Tonks said, her eyes focused on the bedroom door annoyance in her voice.

"Idiots!" Tonks thought to herself in anger. "Trying to calm down a terrified teenager in here, not give her more nightmares. Men, honestly!" Tonks continued thinking.

Tonks turned to look at Hermione, whose eyes were still locked on the door.

"Say, do you think you can hear what's going on out there? I mean, Lupin can hear us and I must say he's being a bit of an idiot right now. Like we want to hear his growling at this hour of the night." Tonks said.

"You IDIOT!" Her mind screamed at her, Tonks closed her eyes at her stupidity.

A giggle reached her ears and Tonks opened her eyes with a snap.

"That's better, can you?" Tonks asked her.

Hermione looked at her, uncertainty in her eyes.

"I...don't know. I only...tonight was the first time..." Hermione stuttered out.

Tonks cringed, of all the times to learn something so significant about you; poor thing had probably a tough time adjusting to the magical world as it was. Now this, with two deaths on her conscious. Tonks knew life was hardly fair but this was just completely cruel.

"Don't worry; I'm sure Lupin will teach you everything you need to know." Tonks replied with a sad smile.

Tonks wanted to move closer but was afraid it could send Hermione over the edge and into a state of blind panic. Something that would end very badly.

"Besides, you'll have the rest of us to help you as well. Every step of the way." Tonks promised her.

"Truer words never spoken." Another voice suddenly said by the door.

Looking round Hermione and Tonks saw Professor McGonagall standing in the doorway, her eyes filled with tears and pain.

"Professor?" Hermione gasped out, her eyes quickly filled with her own tears and quickly spilled over as a sob ripped through her chest.

"I...I didn't mean..." Hermione began to say before another sob took her throat.

McGonagall, deciding to throw the teacher/student relationship completely out the window, rushed forward and took her brightest student into her arms.

"There, there. I know you never meant for it to happen, we all do." McGonagall whispered in comfort as she stroked Hermione's bushy blood soaked hair.

As Hermione clung to her head of house a horrid thought came to mind.

"Can I still come to school?" She whispered, her voice sounding so small.

McGonagall and Tonks felt their hearts tug at the sound.

"Oh my dear girl, of course you can. Don't you worry about that, we'll think of something for you, don't doubt it for a second." McGonagall told her firmly.

Lights from outside lit the bedroom up and Tonks went to the window. Pulling out her wand, her Auror instincts screamed caution. Looking out the window she saw the car pulling up on the drive.

"I think your parents have returned," Tonks said, her eyes fixed out the window before eventually going to turn her attention back to Hermione and her former professor and that was when she saw it and realised something very crucial. Something they all should have realised because of Lupin, though she suspected that he was already aware of it.

The moon was a half moon.

"Professor," Tonks said cautiously.

McGonagall looked over the top of Hermione's head.

"Tonks, you are no longer my student. You can call me Minerva, now what is it?" McGonagall replied.

"It's a half moon tonight, if Hermione is a werewolf..." Tonks began but McGonagall cut her off.

"Yes, well it would seem that there is more than one type of werewolf in our world. Something that Professor Dumbledore only now saw fit to mention," McGonagall replied rather stiffly.

She was not at all happy about this fact, as if the likes Fenrir Greyback weren't enough. It seemed to McGonagall that, at times, Lupin was the only honourable werewolf and now Hermione. Though the poor thing probably didn't feel like it.

"What?!" Tonks and Hermione said together, Hermione ripped her head away from McGonagall's chest.

"Yes, I was rather surprised myself." McGonagall replied to their shock.

"Aahh!" A woman's voice shrieked from downstairs.

Tonks, McGonagall and Hermione looked to the door; while Hermione was terrified both Tonks and McGonagall looked ready to attack if needed.

"Stay here; I'll go find out what's going on." Tonks told them firmly.

With that Tonks, wand raised, left the bedroom. McGonagall pulled out her own wand.

Downstairs, amidst a small collection of wizards, stood Mr & Mrs Granger and both looked frightened.

"What is going on here? Where is our daughter?" Mr Granger demanded, or rather tried to demand.

"We both know that Hermione is not your blood child," Lupin told him sternly. "There isn't a drop of werewolf in you, so my question to you Mr Granger is this. If you are not her parents, who is?" Lupin demanded, only his demand was much more effective.

The couple both paled.

"She can't know..." Mrs Granger began.

"It's a little late in the hour for that, Mrs. Granger," Snape cut her off coldly "especially since she transformed tonight and killed two intruders whom wished to rape her." He finished his eyes colder than his voice.

If possible the couple paled even further.

"Professor Snape is right, time for you to do what you should have done the moment she was old enough to understand. Tell Hermione the truth about where she comes from." Lupin told them.

Mr Granger went to say something but was cut off before he could even start.

"Have you all completely lost your minds? Minerva and I had finally started to get Hermione to settle down only for a scream to send her into a shaking fit of terror!" Tonks scolded them all.

Lupin looked round sharply to the young Auror before promptly moving past her and heading upstairs.

"Where is he going?" Mr Granger demanded, this time succeeding in the demand.

Tonks gave Mr Granger a stern look.

"He is checking on a newly turned werewolf who is terrified out of her mind about what has happened tonight. I would very much like to know where her _parents_ were while she suffered a fate worse than death by having to kill two soulless men that intended to rape her!" Tonks snarled at the couple in anger.

Mrs Granger suddenly swayed where she stood.

"What did you two do? Why would they use Hermione to exact revenge?" Arthur questioned them through clenched teeth, barely keeping a handle on his own anger.

They both exchanged a confused look.

"He asked you a question," Alastor snapped, his usual growl back in place.

"We didn't..." They both denied at the same time.

"It is time to stop the charade," Dumbledore told them sternly.

At Dumbledore's words, Mr Granger's body sagged in defeat.

"Very well, Hermione is not ours by birth. But...we didn't exactly adopt her either. She was...given to us." Mr Granger told them.

The wizards all looked to each other, thinking the same thing.

It was going to be a very long night.

Meanwhile, upstairs Lupin was doing his best to sooth a freshly terrified Hermione while McGonagall had begun digging out a fresh set of clothes for her.

"There is nothing to fear now," Lupin soothed softly. "I won't let anyone harm you now." He told her.

"It's not me you should be worrying about getting hurt." She replied barely above a whisper.

McGonagall was glad that she was busy because if she wasn't, the words of her best student would have brought her to sob her heart out. Hermione was one of the last people to ever go hurting someone, not willingly.

"Oh my dear little cub, it is a terrible burden all werewolves must bare but with practice you will be able to gain control over your actions when in wolf form. If there is anyone strong enough for the task, it is you." Lupin told her gently, allowing her to hear his faith in her abilities.

Hermione clung closer to the Alpha wolf.

"I'm afraid," She whispered.

"We all are." Lupin returned. "Now, you should get dressed. The sooner you do the sooner we can get you away from here and somewhere much safer and I can start teaching you all about us wolves and our abilities. Though, given your being a different kind, we will have to search for someone whom will know the limits of your kind better than I." Lupin told her.

Hermione nodded and pulled away from Lupin.

"Come dear," McGonagall said, walking over to the bed and offering her hand which Hermione grasped and was helped to her feet. "Let's get you cleaned up." McGonagall added.

"I shall wait for you both downstairs." Lupin informed them as he got to his feet.

He walked swiftly to the door, when his hand grabbed the door handle he turned back a little to look at Hermione.

"If there is one more thing I can promise Hermione, it is this. I'll be there whenever you need me." Lupin vowed.

With that he quickly left.

He'd be damned if Hermione was forced to go through this alone like he had.

_Grimmauld Place._

It was fast approaching midnight and there was no word from any of the party that went to collect Hermione. Which is why Mrs Weasley was pacing round and round the kitchen, Sirius Black was sitting at the table. The silence was tense to say the least, Mrs Weasley was just glad that her children were upstairs asleep. Neither of the kitchen's occupants had spoken a word since Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape had taken off at Alastor's vague request.

"Oh, what could have possibly happened?" Mrs Weasley cried, though in a whisper, the last thing they needed was to alert the children that something was wrong.

"I have no idea Molly and in truth, I'm afraid to find out. Hermione is a sister to Harry, if I have to tell him that his sister has been kidnapped or worse...it will destroy him." Sirius replied sombrely.

Mrs Weasley had to clap a hand over her mouth to stop the shriek of terror that began to irrupt from her chest. Sirius looked to the Weasley matriarch.

"Molly, sit down. You'll make yourself dizzy with all the pacing you're doing and there isn't anything we can do until we know what is going on." Sirius told her gently. "Whatever has happened to Hermione...she needs us to be strong when she arrives, we'll be useless if we're about to pass out from fear." He added.

She moved to follow his request without thinking, one hand still clapped over her mouth and tears started to fall. Once Mrs Weasley sat down, she placed her free hand on the table. Feeling powerless to do anything else, Sirius placed his hand on top of hers to bring them both comfort.

As they sat in silence Mrs Weasley and Sirius tried to keep their minds from entertaining the most devastating events imaginable. Little did they know that what they were entertaining was nowhere near the truth.

**A/N: Another chapter reposted for your enjoyment.**


	4. 03: Denial, Anger & Confessions

**Chapter 3: Denial, Anger and More Confessions**

She had never felt so stupid, and that alone made Hermione feel stupid. She had just ripped two men's throats out with her teeth and she was feeling _stupid_! Nevertheless, she did feel stupid because as she walked downstairs with her Head of House, Hermione felt like she was being escorted to her execution. Now as she sits in front of her parents and a collection of wizards, which held her second father, Headmaster and Potions teacher, Hermione felt like she was about to be fired upon at any moment.

Along with feeling stupid, and feeling even more stupid for feeling stupid, Hermione felt like an imposter as she sat in her clean blood free jeans and plain pale blue t-shirt. Her knees were bouncing up and down, her heart rate going at an alarming rate, something that Lupin must have heard as he sat down on the arm rest and wrapped a comforting arm around her.

Arthur couldn't help but wince a little, an act that Hermione caught so she shrunk back into Lupin's comforting one armed hug.

"You hate me now, don't you?" Hermione said to Arthur, her voice wasn't accusing but sad, resigned and self-loathing.

Arthur's eyes widened.

"NO!" He bellowed firmly causing everyone to cringe.

Forcing to himself to settle down, Arthur cautiously walked over to before kneeling down in front of her. He looked to Lupin, silently asking if it was okay for him to be so close to her and when Arthur received a nod he took Hermione's hands in his.

"Hermione, there's nothing that you could do to make me, Molly or my children to hate you. You're mine and Molly's daughter in every way but blood and I swear to you, we will _never_ turn our backs on you." Arthur told her firmly, his voice filled with love and sincerity. "I was only keeping my distance because I don't wish to overwhelm you right now; you have had a horrid night, one that should have been avoided." Arthur told her and couldn't but throw a dark look over to her parents.

Hermione moved out of Lupin's one armed hug and hugged Arthur, tears silently streaming down their faces. Dumbledore looked at Arthur and Hermione's very clear father/daughter relationship with pride.

"As touching as this is," Snape suddenly drawled in. "Can we get to the business of these two idiots informing Granger the truth." He said, his words caused everyone to tense, well almost everyone, Hermione pulled back looking confused.

"What truth?" She asked cautiously before fixing her eyes on Snape "Why the hell are you even here?" She demanded. "I'd of thought being in a muggle home beneath you." She sneered.

While many gasped at her words, mainly Mr & Mrs Granger, others were trying not to smirk. Snape on the other hand merely looked shocked.

"An impressive sneer for such a goody little know-it-all, though in need of great practice." Snape retorted with his own trademark sneer firmly in place.

"Clearly I don't know everything, otherwise I wouldn't be so shocked about what happened tonight and I might have been able to avoid ripping out two men's throat. With my teeth." Hermione snapped back.

Recoil from many was now the theme; Snape however looked untouched by his student's words. At least on the outside, inside his insides snaked and churned with the unmistakable flames of guilt.

"Hermione!" Her parents cried in shock.

"Hermione Jean Granger that is your teacher! This isn't you, what happened to you?" Mrs Granger demanded.

"Idiot!" Several voices said at once.

Hermione's eyes went dark and cold.

"What happened to me? Did you seriously just ask me 'what happened to me'?" Her voice was colder than ice.

Arthur, very wisely, leapt to his feet and put some distance between himself and the new and very angry werewolf.

"Were you not told while I was upstairs?" Hermione said through her teeth and briefly wondered when she got to her feet. "I was almost fucking raped tonight while you two were off having a fancy dinner with your friends and ended up KILLING THEM! BUT THAT'S NOT THE MOST HORRIFIC PART IS IT! NO IT'S THE FACT THAT I SEEM TO BE A WEREWOLF FROM BIRTH AND NEITHER OF YOU BOTHERED TO FUCKING TELL ME!" Hermione screamed at them.

Blood was pounding in her ears again, her gut was churning.

"EVERYONE OUT! _NOW!"_ Lupin shouted at them.

The wizards and witches didn't need to be told twice. Arthur, Snape, Alastor and Kingsley had to grab Mr & Mrs Granger and practically carried them out of the house.

Lupin grabbed Hermione around the waist and held her in a death grip.

"Hermione, you must listen to my voice." Lupin instructed her.

"It hurts..." She gasped Lupin's hold on her tightened.

"I know. I know but unlike me, you can stop the change happening, just focus on my voice." Lupin told her, his voice while firm was soft.

"How will that h-help?" she gasped out.

"You need to focus on my voice so I can help calm you down," Lupin replied.

Hermione suddenly noticed a difference, to begin with Lupin's voice sounded far away and was tuning in and out like an old radio. Now, now his voice was clear and constant.

"I'm starting to..." She said her gasps of pain lessoning.

"Good, okay. I want you to think about being at Hogwarts, in the common room celebrating winning the cup for Quidditch. Can you do that?" Lupin asked her.

His words didn't exactly help matters, as when Gryffindor won the Quidditch school cup she had been approaching her wits end by doing so much studying. Not to mention the fact that Ron had accused Crookshanks of murdering Scabbers, whom later turned out to be not only alive but really Peter Pettigrew.

"You do remember what happened my third year, right?" Hermione asked him in shock.

Lupin smiled, he was distracting her from the anger that erupted.

"Yes, I do. I seem to remember your biggest fear was Minerva telling you that you failed all your exams," Lupin replied with a soft chuckle, as a smile erupted on his face.

"You find that funny?" Hermione asked, feeling a little hurt.

"Only because you're no longer angry," he replied with relief.

Hermione was about to reply when she suddenly realised that not only was Lupin correct but the pain was also gone. She felt herself sag with her own relief.

"Thank you," she whispered softly.

"You're welcome," Lupin returned.

Outside the Granger house, Mr & Mrs Granger were both shaking like leaves in a rather vicious wind. Their daughter had completely changed in a matter of seconds.

"How could she just...change like that?" Mrs Granger whispered softly.

McGonagall looked at her with cold rage burning in her eyes.

"Really? You are really asking such a foolish question as that? Your daughter just transformed into a werewolf for the very first time and killed two men who wished to take her innocence and you stand there caring more for her manners than what she is feeling!" McGonagall snapped at Mrs Granger, her voice far colder than anyone else there had ever heard it.

"Minerva, peace. We must do all we can to keep Hermione calm, seeing as arguing with her parents will only bring the opposite." Dumbledore told McGonagall gently, though his dazzling blue eyes colder than McGonagall's voice.

"How could you not tell Hermione this? It is her life; she has a right to know!" Arthur demanded, he found himself unable to keep his own anger under control.

"No she doesn't!" Mr Granger snapped.

"It was safer for us if she didn't know." Mrs Granger added in a hard voice.

Backs bristled and straightened at their words.

"Explain yourselves." Snape said and unlike Arthur or McGonagall, Snape's voice was the most chilling of all for it held something that nobody had heard but the Death Eaters he had once foolishly called friends.

"Severus?" Dumbledore asked in concern.

Not even Dumbledore had heard his Potions Master speak in such a tone, it was the true definition of bone chilling.

"Why was it safer for you two to have Hermione in the dark?" Snape asked in the same chilling voice.

The couple suddenly went incredibly pale and silent.

"Well?" Snape demanded showing anger for the first time all night.

With all the eyes focused completely on Mr & Mrs Granger, nobody noticed that Hermione and Lupin standing in the kitchen door way.

"What is he talking about?" Hermione asked, ignoring the startled jump of the group as she looked from her teacher to her parents and back again.

"N-nothing, darling." Mrs Granger stuttered out.

"You're lying, I can smell it." Hermione replied hurt before realising what she just said and turned to look at Lupin. "That is disgusting! Am I always going to be able to tell..." She began to ask but stopped at Lupin's nod.

"And much more, trust me you don't want to be around Sirius when there's a pretty woman nearby." Lupin told her, his own look of disgust forming.

"You cannot deny the truth any more Mr & Mrs Granger, and Hermione has every right to know what is going on here." Dumbledore said sternly effectively ending one of the many conversations that Hermione and Lupin need to have about her new found werewolf status.

Dumbledore's words brought a new feeling of dread in Hermione.

"Wait, did...did you two know what I am?" Hermione asked, her voice suddenly sounding rather small.

Mr & Mrs Granger flinched at her question and once again tried to buy for time.

"Hermione, dear it's a complicated matter and a family matter at that," Mrs Granger replied, her face still pale.

"It's not complicated, you're avoiding and I have a right to know what is going on when it's MY LIFE!" Hermione replied suddenly feeling very alone, with anger beginning to stir again.

Lupin leaned in a little and whispered in her ear.

"Find another happy memory Hermione, it may sound useless but it helped you calm down before." Lupin advised her quietly.

Hermione, despite the swirling mass of confusion, managed to follow through Lupin's suggestion while her eyes remained fixed on her parents. After some moments of tense silence it finally became too much for Hermione.

"Someone say something!" She barked.

But once again her words were met with silence, which only irritated everyone further. Especially Snape.

"If neither of you will be as brave as Miss Granger has been then I shall grant her the answers she deserves." Snape sneered at her parents.

"Don't you dare?" Mr Granger ordered him.

"Oh, so you'll talk when Professor Snape says something you don't like but ignore your own child." Hermione said sarcastically but was unable to keep the hurt from showing.

"You're too young to understand what is going on here, Hermione now be quiet." Her father ordered her coldly.

Hermione shrank into Lupin unable to believe that her loving father could suddenly become a different person.

"No!" Snape roared, he was angrier than Hermione had ever seen him. Which was another shock to her as he was usually a bastard to anyone whom wasn't a Slytherin? "Miss Granger is not too young to understand this, her childhood truly ended tonight when she was forced to kill the two evil animals that tried to take her innocence. Now, _talk_!" Snape ordered them, walking as he did until eventually he was towering over them in a rage thrice his height.

"Severus, try to calm down. We cannot risk the muggles hearing us." Dumbledore told his Potions Master calmly.

"Assuming they haven't heard us already," Moody muttered under his breath.

"Albus, we must get Miss Granger out of here. The longer we remain the more danger she will be in." McGonagall told him, her eyes searching the dark.

"I've got my eye everywhere Minerva, we're alone. For now." Moody replied in a soft growl.

"Nevertheless, Minerva is right. We must get Miss Granger out of here; it is too late to stick to the original plan. We have no choice but to apparate her to safety." Dumbledore said a sense of urgency in his voice.

"NO!" Hermione said definitely. "We're not going anywhere until they tell me what the fuck is going on here!" She growled in anger, everyone but Lupin backed away. "Did...did you know that I was a natural born werewolf?" Hermione asked her parents. "Yes or No!" she added before they could try and come up with some way to avoid the question.

The saying goes 'You could cut the tension with a knife' but not even a white hot sword would be able to cut through the tension that met Hermione's words as they all stood in the back garden.

"Yes, we knew." Mrs Granger whispered with defeat.


	5. 04: Revelations In The Betrayal

**Chapter 04: Revelation in the Betrayal**

He had never really had a tolerance for cowards. Which is why, despite his actions to prove the contrary, Severus Snape loathed almost all his Slytherin students. Draco Malfoy was someone whom he held with particular contempt, which was truly sad with the boy being his Godson, but how could Snape not hold the boy in contempt when he was proving to follow in his father's footsteps. Bullying anyone who had different views and upbringing, but above all, the one thing that really got under Snape's skin was the way his Godson seemed to get a disturbing kick out of bullying Hermione Granger.

Snape still couldn't understand it, but from the moment he set eyes on the girl, she brought a sense of familiarity to him that he just couldn't put his finger on. It was the eyes more than anything else, same with Potter really but at least with Potter the familiarity was understood. Granger not only triggered feelings of familiarity in Snape but also the burning desire to protect her. Dumbledore had joked that maybe she was bringing out his fraternal instincts, a joke Snape didn't particularly find amusing.

Putting the memory of Dumbledore's poor joke aside, Snape returned his attention to situation at hand. The Grangers had known their daughter was werewolf born and kept it quiet. Why?

He was itching at the bit to ask his own questions but right now everyone was waiting for one of the Grangers to answer their daughter's question.

"Yes, we knew." Mrs Granger whispered in defeat.

Snape felt the anger burst in his chest as Mrs Granger's defeated tone made it very clear to him that they had no intention of telling Hermione the truth at all. He watched as the girl seemed to cave in on herself and he found, again for reasons he couldn't explain, that his heart ached for her. Though he knew that there was a better chance of Riddle feeling remorse than there was of him becoming friends with Remus Lupin, Snape felt suddenly grateful that the werewolf was staying so close to Hermione as her legs seemed to give out from under her.

"They knew..." she whimpered before starting to silently cry.

A fierce protectiveness shot through Snape like he had never known. He knew what it was like to have your parents deceive you, but at least the deception his parents pulled was small and insignificant compared to this.

"Congratulations. You've just destroyed your daughter more effectively than the men who just tried to rape her." Snape snarled in uncontrollable anger.

"She is NOT our daughter!" Mr Granger roared suddenly.

Taking everyone, not just Hermione, by surprise. Sure the rest of the party already knew what Mr Granger had just screamed. It was the manner in which he decided to reveal the truth to Hermione that had them so stunned.

Nobody said a word.

Nobody breathed.

They just...stared.

Mrs Granger was the only one making any noise as she sobbed her heart out. It was clear, by the look of pure horror on Mr Granger's face, that this was a secret they had never truly wanted to reveal. To anyone.

_Crack_.

It was like gun fire to Mr and Mrs Granger but to the wizards and witches it sounded like a spell backfiring.

_Crack._

"What is that?" Tonks asked confused.

Lupin looked to Snape and they both realised what was happening.

"Oh shit..." Snape whispered in terror. "Remus...g-get her out of here...NOW MAN!" Snape told him, screaming in terror.

"Hermione..." Lupin pleaded desperately, apparating with a shifting wolf could be deadly all on its own.

His plea however went unheeded. She was too consumed with the shift to hear anything but the sound of her bones and shifting to notice her surroundings.

"Calming Draught." Lupin told Snape firmly before taking a shifting new wolf into his arms and disappearing on the spot.

"Where..." Mrs Granger began, wide eyed and no longer sobbing.

"If you're wondering where Remus has gone with her, it's somewhere safe." Snape told her coldly.

It looked as though Mr and Mrs Granger both intended to ask further questions, questions that they had no right to ask as far as Snape was concerned. So, he literally turned his back on them and focused his attention on Dumbledore.

"Headmaster, these...people cannot stay here any longer now. The muggles have most likely registered the noise as gun fire and are calling the police. We need to put them someplace else. At least, while Miss Granger is on all fours." Snape advised the Headmaster.

Though Dumbledore's eyes were focused on Mr and Mrs Granger, giving the impression he wasn't listening, he heard every word that Snape had said.

"Yes, we had best. I just hope that Miss Granger can return to her human self after this." Dumbledore replied.

What?

"Return to human form? Surely she will do that anyway?" McGonagall suddenly spoke up, her voice trembling slightly with fear.

"That, Minerva is up to her. Given the _attitude_ of certain people, she may well decide to stay in her werewolf form for some time." Dumbledore told her.

Snape gave Dumbledore a sharp look.

"Do you mean to tell me that you know what kind of werewolf she is and you have only just decided to fess up?" Snape demanded.

"I only have rumours to go by I'm afraid. But I know people we can trust with this to make the proper inquires without rousing Riddle's suspicions." Dumbledore replied gently.

Shit!

How could he forget about the enemy their fighting, if Riddle found out about Granger...he'd stop at nothing to get his hands on her? She would be more coveted than Potter himself.

"Where are we going to take them, Albus?" Alastor asked his dear friend.

"I shall leave that to you, Alastor. It is for the best that nobody other than you and their guards know their location." Dumbledore told him firmly.

"What of Miss Granger? She deserves answers Albus." McGonagall told him.

"Oh and she'll get her answers Minerva. I'll make sure of it." Alastor replied with a growl. His eyes locked firmly on the muggles.

He would never know what made him ask, but Snape suddenly rounded on the two muggles with a cold stare.

"Tell me, as Miss Granger is certain to ask this herself at first chance, who are her birth parents?" He demanded.

He had no intention of letting them leave until he got the answer Granger had the right to know.

Mr Granger looked ready to clam up for the long haul but Mrs Granger was much more terrified.

"We don't know the name of her birth father...we know he was the werewolf though. As for her mother..." Mrs Granger began but was cut off by her husband.

"Mary no! We swore!" Mr Granger told his wife.

"She deserves to know...the rest of her kind will know soon enough that she has had her first transformation. They'll come to see her." Mrs Granger replied in terror.

It seemed that being told shocking news was the running theme of the night.

"Why will they come for her?" Snape and Arthur demanded at the same time.

Mr Granger closed his eyes; it was plain for all to see that he was hoping to wake up from the nightmare.

"Hermione...is the first werewolf of her father's family to be born female for more than 400 years." Mr Granger answered resigned.

"Albus...I hate to cut this short just as we start to get somewhere. But dawn is fast approaching and the neighbours are starting to wake up. Not to mention the muggle law are fast approaching." Alastor told him, a hint of panic in his voice.

Alastor, Tonks and Kingsley moved forward and grabbed hold of Mr and Mrs Granger's arms.

"Wait!" Snape told them. "Her mother's name, now!" Snape ordered.

Mr and Mrs Granger looked at each other before Mrs Granger gave the name.

A name that left Severus Snape reeling.

_Meanwhile_...

Lupin apparated just outside Grimmauld Place when he realised that coming here was insane, utter madness. There was no way that Hermione was in any condition to remember the address of the Order to gain entry and that left the question. What the hell was he to do? Her bones were starting to break even faster now and it was starting to hurt his own werewolf ears.

"Damn it!" Lupin cursed himself for his stupidity. "Okay, hold on Hermione, change of plan." He pleaded with her before apparating again.

_Weasley Residence._

Lupin apparated inside the Weasley kitchen, relief surging through him but it was short lived. As he started sweating profusely now with his own panic, his wolf was screaming at him to release the new wolf before she broke him in two. So Lupin did just that and rushed to the fireplace, grabbing the jaw that held the Floo Powder and, in his panic, threw the whole jaw into the fireplace. The effect was instantaneous.

"12 Grimmauld Place!" He shouted as he shoved his head in to the fire.

His heart was beating in pure terror, he was absolutely mad. The kitchen of Grimmauld Place appeared in front of him and he saw Sirius and Molly sitting at the table.

"SIRIUS!" He shouted.

Sirius fell out of his chair and Molly jumped a mile high. Looking round Sirius's eyes went wide in terror.

"What's happened?" He asked, afraid of the answer.

"No time to explain, get your arse through this fire NOW!" Lupin ordered before retreating his head through the fire.

Lupin hit the ground on his butt hard and scampered back on his hands and knees to allow room for Sirius to come through. As soon as he was a good distance away from the fire place he leapt to his feet and turned his attention to Hermione but he couldn't see her.

"Fuck..." Lupin whispered in horror.

The flames erupted once more and Sirius stepped out his wand at the ready.

"What..." Sirius began but Lupin slapped his own over his friend's mouth.

"Not a sound." He whispered. "Put your wand away...I have no idea how she'll react to it." Lupin ordered softly.

Sirius felt his gut snake and coil with fear. What the bloody hell was going on here? It was reluctance and an impending sense of doom that Sirius followed Lupin's instructions. Then he saw it...someone or rather some_thing_ was hunched over by the dinner table.

"Whatever happens, _don't_ let her leave the house." Lupin told him.

"Don't let who leave?" Sirius asked his voice barely above a whisper.

"See that light golden brown lump?" Lupin asked his friend.

"By the table...yes. Who is it? What is it?" Sirius asked back.

"Hermione or rather...Hermione in her werewolf form." Lupin replied.

Sirius looked from the lump to Remus and back...just in time to see the lump straighten up on it's hind legs. Sirius didn't have time to be afraid instead he transformed into his animal form and waited.

The howl made his ears ache.

_Grimmauld Place_

Molly was in a fit of paralysing terror. Sirius had just rushed off some place to help Lupin, whose face showed nothing but pure horror. What had happened to Hermione? What in the name of Merlin had happened to her beloved second daughter?

When the kitchen door burst open Molly let out a blood curdling scream and spun round. Hands cupped her face, the hands of her husband and Molly's scream died out.

"Arthur...oh Arthur! What has happened?" She asked as she threw her arms around her husband. "Why hasn't Hermione been brought here?" She pleaded to know.

"It's a long story Molly." Arthur told her. "Severus you better get to work on that Calming Draught." Arthur threw of his shoulder as he tried to calm his hysterical wife down.

Calls of "Filth" "Blood Traitors" began to come from the hallway.

"Not again." Minerva said in irritation before turning on her heel and heading off to deal with the source of the noise.

Snape however remained frozen in place, stunned disbelief on his face.

"Severus." Arthur said sharply.

Snape startled and looked to the Weasley patriarch.

"The Calming Draught, the most powerful one possible. Hermione is going to need it." Arthur told him softly.

"Right. Hermione...Calming Draught." Snape mumbled and began to get to work.

It was clear to everyone, even a hysterically terrified Molly that Snape was on autopilot.

"Severus? Are you alright?" Molly asked worriedly.

Snape didn't answer he just continued with his work.

He couldn't believe it. After all this time...he thought that she had died at the same time but she was alive and well. He tried to make sense of everything but he couldn't. So Snape just focused on the simple fact that despite having been told otherwise, his cousin's child was alive.

Hermione Granger was Severus Snape's cousin.

**A/N: Another complete chapter**


	6. 05: Whispered Conversations & A Mess

**Chapter 05: Whispered Conversations and A Mess.**

"We have to tell her everything, it's her life we're messing with here." Mrs Granger pleaded in a desperate hushed tone to her husband.

Mr Granger hid his face in his hands, desperately trying to understand the night's events. Eventually he withdrew his hands and stared at his wife.

"It doesn't make sense. The man that brought her to us _swore_ on his life that Hermione wouldn't change until her 21st birthday in accordance to some...oath her mother had made before she died." Mr Granger replied confused.

Mrs Granger glanced over to the two wizards and the young witch that was guarding them before turning back to her husband.

"What if it something went wrong...that man, whoever he was, also told us that if the oath was broken for some reason Hermione would turn at the first life and death situation she faced." Mrs Granger reminded her husband.

Mr Granger's heart went into his throat.

"Oh God...then that means he's dead." Mr Granger choked in terror before looking at his wife.

Mrs Granger looked at him horrified.

"We don't know that for sure...maybe the oath was done incorrectly. We don't even know what the hell is involved in an oath; we know _nothing_ about this world of witches, wizards and werewolves." Mrs Granger tried to reason, anger seeping into her voice.

She cursed herself for never bothering trying to find out more of their daughter's true nature.

"No, he has to be dead. If the oath had been done incorrectly, Hermione would have come to realise who she really is far sooner than this." He replied logically.

"So...he, whoever he was, is dead." Mrs Granger stated sombrely.

"Who's dead?" Alastor's growl suddenly interrupted.

Mr and Mrs Granger both jumped out of their skins.

Once the Grangers had extracted themselves from the ceiling however, they once again chose to remain silent about what was happening to their daughter. Something which infuriated their protectors even further and Tonks was the first to snap.

"Listen here you sadistic bastards, that girl has been through more tonight than anyone should ever go through. So if you don't start talking under your own control I'm going to shove some Veritaserum down your throats!" Tonks snapped, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"Veri...what?" Mr Granger asked nonplussed.

"The only thing you need to worry about Mr Granger is that Veritaserum makes the drinker spill every single truth they hold." Alastor growled.

Mr and Mrs Granger paled so fast their protectors feared they'd die of blood loss.

"So, I ask again. Who is dead?" Alastor repeated once the pair showed signs of blood returning to their brains.

Mrs Granger sighed.

"We don't know his name..." she began but was quickly cut off by Kingsley.

"Don't know much do you." He said coldly.

Mrs Granger grimaced.

"He said it was safer for all involved if no names were exchanged." Mr Granger replied with a resigned sigh.

The three Aurors exchanged looks of unease; the situation with Hermione Granger was starting to read more and more like a conspiracy. Something that was making Alastor Moody in particular very, very nervous.

"Go on." The seasoned Auror urged.

"Where was I?" Mrs Granger mumbled to herself before returning her attention to her protectors. "Well, firstly. Hermione was indeed born September 19th but she came to us on the 29th." She began; a wistful smile came to her lips as she remembered.

"Hermione was asleep in the arms of the man who delivered her to us, the one who made it very clear that no names were to be exchanged except for Hermione's. He told us exactly who, or what depending on your point of view, her parents were. That they were important in their respectful worlds and that the union was...frowned upon by certain wizards and witches." Mrs Granger told them.

"Death Eaters." Tonks muttered darkly.

The Grangers nodded before Mr Granger took over the story.

"The man gave us a little bit of history on Hermione's father's line. You see, Hermione is the first female werewolf of natural birth of her _father's_ line, as we mentioned earlier. There are other female werewolves born to other families but Hermione's birth was a much coveted event. We tried to press for more details but he blatantly refused to go into more detail than that, I think he was afraid. He just wanted to put Hermione in our care and get as far away as possible." Mr Granger told them before exchanging a look with his wife.

Who then took it as her cue to finish the very limited detailed story.

"He did tell us that there was some...oath, I suppose spell would be more accurate really, in place on Hermione to keep her from changing until either her 21st birthday or his death. He being the one that brought her to us." Mrs Granger finished.

Nobody said anything, but the Aurors were even more troubled. There was too much crucial information missing but they knew that the Grangers weren't leaving anything out this time or holding back.

"Didn't he give you the name of her birth father?" Tonks asked.

The muggles shook their heads in no.

"I do not like this, Alastor. So little information will make it far more difficult to tell who the enemies and allies are." Kingsley told the seasoned Auror some time later as the three of them sat round the kitchen table.

"Nor I but we're limited in what we can do right now." Alastor replied with his regular growl.

Tonks was quiet, staring at something on the table that only she can see.

"What do you think Tonks?" Kingsley asked her.

When she didn't reply however Alastor proceeded to kick her with his cane.

"Ow!" Tonks cried out in anger before looking at one of her mentors. "Merlin's sake, Moody. Next time you want my attention wave your hand in front of my face!" She snapped at him angrily.

"Then stop daydreaming about Remus and join in the conversation!" Alastor snapped back.

Tonks felt her body flush with embarrassment.

"I was _not_ daydreaming about Remus. I was actually thinking about the situation at hand." She told him tartly.

"Then by all means, share with us your wisdom." Alastor replied with a disturbingly equal level of tartly behaviour.

Tonks glared at him for a few moments before sighing.

"I was just thinking. It's very obvious from what little information that we do have that the unknown man who delivered Hermione to those two that he had magic. At least enough magic to invoke such a powerful spell as binding Hermione's werewolf nature until her 21st birthday or his death. Agreed?" Tonks put to the other two.

Alastor and Kingsley nodded showing they both agreed and were following Tonks' thought process.

"So, would it be so implausible of him to actually tell Hermione's parents _everything_ before casting a memory spell to erase the most crucial information?" She suggested.

A suggestion that soon sent Alastor from his seat to the back door.

"Stay here." He ordered with some much as a backward glance.

"Your welcome!" Tonks called after him.

Silence descended over her and Kingsley for a few minutes before Kingsley had a thought of his own.

"I wonder if Miss Granger has returned to human form yet?" Kingsley wondered.

Tonks didn't know what to say to that, instead her heart broke at the thought of what Hermione must be going through right now. Tonks found herself thinking that she'd never inflict such pain on anyone, not even Voldemort himself.

"Then again he probably doesn't even have emotions anymore so it's not like it'd bother him all that much." Tonks thought to herself as she turned her attention to the window.

_Meanwhile at the Burrow..._

It wasn't possible.

It just...wasn't possible.

Staring at the scene before them both Sirius and Lupin wondered just how in the name of Merlin they were going to keep this from Molly Weasley. It didn't matter that they were powerful wizards, there was just no way to keep her from finding out.

"Remus..." Sirius began but soon trailed off.

"I know...it's just..." Remus replied as though Sirius had went ahead with his sentence.

"Everything's just..." Sirius tried again.

_Crash..._

Sirius and Lupin flinched as more of the wall came down.

If they didn't know any better, they would have thought that the Death Eaters had attacked or a powerful earthquake had taken place. But neither of these things were responsible for the complete and utter devastation that laid out before them.

Furniture had been ripped and torn to into big pieces and pieces no bigger than your little finger nail. The plumbing had been destroyed and the room was now filled with two inches of water and as for the wall that separated the kitchen from the living room, well, as of right now it was no longer standing.

In the centre of the wreck, on the only piece of furniture that looked to be in one piece, was a very human and sleeping Hermione.

"What kind of werewolf is she?" Sirius eventually asked.

Lupin looked at the sleeping cub with a vicious storm of anger and heartbreak coursing through his veins.

"If I have to guess, she is the muggles idea of a werewolf. Four legs, fur and one dangerous temper. Except for the fact that she doesn't need a full moon to change." Lupin replied with no emotion in his voice.

Sirius watched as his Godson's best friend slept off the night's very active events. He found himself loathing the feeling of being useless even more, there was nothing he could do to help her or take the pain away.

"I hate feeling this powerless, Remus." Sirius growled.

"You're not powerless, Sirius. You can help her in the exact same way you help me every full moon." Lupin told him.

Sirius continued to stare at the sleeping lump.

"There is something far more serious than Hermione being a werewolf." Sirius suddenly said in a scared voice.

Lupin turned to look at his best friend with shock.

"What?" He questioned.

Sirius turned to look at Lupin.

"What the hell is Molly going to say when she finds out that her kitchen has been destroyed?" He asked.

Lupin felt his eyes go wide before promptly turning to look at the mess and then back to his best friend.

"I'm sure she'll be willing to over look it. After all, it's not like Hermione has any control over her wolf yet and Molly loves Hermione like a second daughter. Molly will be fine...just fine." Lupin replied, his eyes fixed on the mess before them.

Sirius looked at his best friend carefully.

"She may not blame Hermione but it was you that brought a new and thoroughly pissed off werewolf to Molly's home." Sirius reminded him.

Both Lupin and his wolf suddenly gulped.

"I'm a dead werewolf aren't I?" Lupin asked his friend, whose only response was to slap Remus on the back.

"It's been a pleasure knowing you my friend. You'll be sure to give James and Lily my best." Sirius replied sombrely.

Lupin dropped his head knowing that he was indeed doomed.


	7. 06:More Questions

**Chapter 06: More Questions and the Sensitivity of Ron Weasley**

There were two things that Hermione became aware of as she slowly returned to the land of the conscious. The first of these was that her body ached, badly. Oh sure, it was a sensation she had gotten used to over the last four years, an aching body was to be expected when you're a best friend of Harry Potter and ended up aiding him in yet another face off against Voldemort but this. This was a whole new kind of aching, Hermione was pretty sure that parts of her body that are never supposed to know the feeling were throbbing.

"How does Remus do this every month?" Hermione whimpered in her mind. "This has to be a special kind of torture that only the devil can give." Her mind continued.

The second thing that Hermione became aware of was the fact that her naked body was covered by something.

"Don't get up just yet, Hermione." Lupin's whispered voice from her head.

Opening her eyes slowly, Hermione saw her former Professor kneeling down beside her looking pained.

"Are you okay?" Hermione croaked out.

Merlin was she thirsty.

Lupin looked at her shocked but smiling softly.

"I think that is a question I should be asking you." Lupin returned. "Are you?" He asked gently.

Hermione's response was to simply groan at her aching body.

"I never thought it would be possibly for my _skin_ to hurt." Hermione replied.

Lpuin smiled again but this time it was pained.

"Yes, I am familiar with it. Once you've had time to get some strength back we will take you to the safe house." Lupin told her softly.

"Okay," Hermione whispered before snuggling down under the blanket that had been thrown over her with every intention of going back to sleep. But then Lupin's words caught up to her and her eyes flew open.

"Wait, if we're not at the safe house...where are we?" Hermione asked him.

"The Burrow." He answered.

"WHAT!" Hermione screeched and tried to sit up but her exhausted body refused to do so.

"Easy, don't worry about anything Hermione..." Lupin began to try to sooth her but Hermione was still trying to get up.

"But everyone saw me...they probably want me...o-out..." Hermione said as tears began to form.

They probably knew all about how she was a natural born werewolf by now, she knew that wouldn't really bother them but when they found that she was now a killer. It broke her heart to think that the Weasley family would want nothing to do with her.

Lupin felt like he had been sucker punched, her pain and fears were all too familiar to Remus.

"Hermione, they love you and there is no way that any of them would turn their backs on you for being a werewolf." Lupim told her softly.

"B-but they will when they find out I'm a k...killer..." Hermione sobbed.

There had been many times in his life were Lupin had felt powerless but all those times pale in comparison compared to right now.

"Hermione," Sirius chimed in softy.

Lupin hadn't even noticed his best friend coming into the room, let alone kneeling to his right.

"The only thing that the Weasleys are going to care about is the fact that they weren't there to protect you or there to kill the bastards themselves." Sirius told her softly, but not completely able to keep some of his anger from slipping out.

Hermione had to tilt her head right back in order to look at Sirius, and the look on her face broke Sirius's heart.

"What if they don't?" She asked in a small voice.

"You have Remus, Harry and me. Beside, if the little information that Remus told me last night during you one wolf house party you've got the Order behind you." Sirius told her firmly.

There was no way in hell that he was going to doom his Godson's best friend to a life of loneliness. No way. Sirius's words brought a small smile to her face before she registered some of his words.

"One wolf house party?" She asked curious.

Lupin and Sirius exchanged sheepish looks.

"Let's just say that you're rather...energetic as a werewolf." Lupin told her sheepishly.

Hermione looked at them confused until she raised her head and saw the devastation she had created while in her wolf form.

"Oh my..." Hermione gasped out, her eyes threatening to fall out of her head.

The Burrow was all but completely destroyed and Hermione had no idea how the house was still standing.

"W...how do we..." Hermione stumbled out.

Lupin and Sirius simply smiled.

"Well, you may not be able to perform magic outside Hogwarts yet but Remus and I can." Sirius replied with a laugh.

Despite everything that she had discovered since last night and her aching body, Hermione was able to laugh. Granted it was a small and quick chuckle but it was still a laugh.

"That's better, we'll have to make sure you've a smile of some kind in place when meet up with the others." Sirius said smiling.

Lupin scoffed a little.

"You're just hoping that a smiling Hermione will keep Molly from killing you." Lupin chided him.

"Like your not." Sirius threw back.

Lupin thought about it for a moment before nodding in agreement, which was understandable really. Molly Weasley could be a very terrifying woman when she so wishes.

"I don't have any clothes, though." Hermione suddenly told them.

Lupin smiled.

"McGonagall will be here shortly with some clothes for you." Lupin told her.

"Good heavens!" The shocked voice of McGonagall came almost as soon as Lupin finished talking.

Hermione raised her head a little to look at her Transfiguration professor shamefully.

"I lost control again," Hermione admitted, her remorse clear for the adults to hear.

McGonagall looked at her best student with sadness, a look that Hermione was unfamiliar with. Without another word McGonagall walked over to Hermione and sat down on the edge of the sofa.

"Don't you worry Miss Granger, like everything else you just need time. Before you know it you will have full control over your transitions." McGonagall told her softly.

"You think so, Professor?" Hermione asked.

"Absolutely. After all, Gryffindor only takes the very best." She said with pride before casting a glance to Sirius and Lupin. "Of course, there have been exceptions." She added.

Sirius and Lupin looked at their former teacher with shock.

"Minerva! Was that a joke?" Sirius asked horrified, a hand shooting to his heart and looking at his best friend. "Sweet Merlin, Remus! That's it! We're all about to be destroyed!" Sirius cried dramatically.

Lupin and Hermione laughed at Sirius's behaviour while McGonagall returned to her natural stern expression.

"Why don't you and Remus fix up the Weasley home while I help Miss Granger get cleaned up?" McGonagall instructed.

The two wizards nodded and immediately went about their task. While McGonagall, after creating magical screen guards all around the two witches, began to help Hermione to her feet to start helping her get dressed.

As magical repairs began at the Burrow, Grimmauld Place was in a much more sober state. Mrs Weasley was known to worry terribly for all children, whether they be red haired or not, but after learning of the cruel fate her second daughter has been given. Well, she was still in a state of great shock. Mr Weasley had sat with his wife for hours and simply watched her as she stared off into space.

"Molly?" Mr Weasley asked cautiously.

Her tear filled eyes snapped to her husband and her lips began to tremble.

"Oh..." She uttered before exploded into a fit of heart wrenching sobs.

Mr Weasley wasted no time and promptly propelled out of his seat to wrap his arms around his wife as she sobbed hysterically.

"T-the p-oor thing..." Mrs Weasley stuttered out.

"I know," Mr Weasley murmured as his one hand began to caress his wife's hair.

"S...she must be so s-scared!" Mrs Weasley wailed.

Mr Weasley tightened his grip on his wife.

"We will help her, Molly." Mr Weasley promised.

"Help who?" Ginny Weasley asked, effectively announcing the arrival of the Weasley children.

Mr and Mrs Weasley sprung apart and stared at their pyjama wearing children. At the sight of their mother's pale and tear drenched face Fred, George, Ron, Ginny and Bill went whiter than the Hogwarts ghosts.

"What's happened?" Bill forced himself to ask, his voice barely above a whisper.

Mr Weasley sighed and forced his tired body to stand up.

"You should all sit down, this will not be easy for you to hear." Mr Weasley told them gently.

As their sons legs turned to a bizarre mixture of jelly and lead, Ginny's whole body began to shake like her own personal earthquake.

"Who?" Fred forced himself to ask, straightening his back as if to prepare himself for the answer. "Who has been killed?" He repeated firmly.

"Nobody." Mr Weasley told them firmly. "At least, not as far we know." He amended.

The five Weasley children visibly collapsed into themselves.

"Then what's going on?" George asked, an air of caution in his voice.

Their parents exchanged looks before Mrs Weasley nodded.

"It was agreed that it would be best." Mrs Weasley reminded him.

"I would much rather have her permission, Molly. She's just found out her entire life was a lie, she should have a say on who knows what and when." Mr Weasley replied.

Mrs Weasley looked at him for a moment, thinking about if it were her.

"You're right, trust will be the most precious thing we can offer her right now." Mrs Weasley agreed after some thinking.

The five Weasley children looked at each other completely confused.

"Do either of you get the feeling we've missed a conversation?" Fred asked his siblings.

"Yeah." George, Ginny and Bill replied as one.

"What's for breakfast?" Ron suddenly asked.

Six sets of eyes suddenly focused themselves on Ron with disbelief.

"Seriously!" Ginny demanded in anger.

Ron just looked back at his sister confused.

"What? They're obviously not going to tell us and I'm starving." Ron replied casually before walking over to the table and throwing himself in a seat.

Ginny, Fred and George were about ready to bounce on their ridiculously insensitive brother when there was a knock on the door.

"I'll go," Mrs Weasley murmured before heading out of the kitchen.

Bill, while glaring at his little brother, decided it best to get to the bottom of whatever had his mother so upset.

"Dad, what aren't you telling us?" Bill asked, finally pulling his blue eyes off of his brother.

Mr Weasley sighed.

"You will find out soon enough." Mr Weasley replied sadly.

"Does this mean we can eat then?" Ron asked with impatience.

Ginny scowled at him.

"Can I please jinx him?" Ginny asked her father.

"No," he replied, his voice soaked in a sternness he rarely used.

Before his daughter could object the unmistakable sounds of anger reached the kitchen.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" A voice snarled in the hallway, each word signalling that the owner was getting closer.

"Is that Snape?" George wondered as he turned his attention tot he doorway.

Sure enough the Hogwarts Potions Master in a storm of anger.

"I want to know where she is, Molly!" Snape snapped

"I told you, Severus. I don't know." Mrs Weasley replied desperately.

"Severus!" Mr Weasley snapped.

The Potions Master turned his attention to the Weasley patriarch.

"Remus is with her, she is safe. He loves her the same way I love Ginny, I promise you, Hermione is safe." Mr Weasley told him firmly.

Snape sagged against the wall cabinet.

"Hermione is in danger!" Ginny shrieked horrified.

Her brothers, Ron especially, paled once more.

"No," Mr Weasley replied gently but firmly as he pulled his daughter into a hug. "Hermione has received a rather...unique shock." Mr Weasley continued delicately.

"What kind of shock?" Bill asked cautiously.

"Miss Granger, is my cousin." Snape answered in awe, but intentionally, he had no intention of revealing his cousin was a natural born werewolf. He knew all too well about Ronald Weasley's past behaviour towards Hermione.

His claim was met with stunned silence before...

"WHAT!" Ron shouted into silence.


	8. 07: Interlude

**Chapter 07: **_Interlude_

He ran for all his worth.

He knew what would happen if he delayed, their enemies most likely knew by now and their idiot of a spy had delayed in sending word. Not that Simon knew why, but the one thing Simon did know was that he'd be searching for a new spy by dawn.

With the exception of a fight to the death, the boss hated delays.

As Simon got closer to his boss's office, he heard the unmistakable sounds of rage, bringing Simon to a shuddering and terrified halt.

"Fuck..." Simon mumbled to himself.

The boss knew.

With a gulp, Simon walked the rest of the way and through the open door.

The sight that greeted him was one of destruction.

"Something you wish to tell me, Simon?" The boss suddenly asked him coldly.

Simon made quick work of pulling his eyes away from the destruction and looked at his boss.

"I only found out myself 2 minutes ago boss, I swear. I came straight to you the second I was told." Simon urged his boss and bowing his head in submission.

The boss looked at Simon for a moment.

"The...contact is to be replaced. Immediately." He ordered.

"Yes, Sir. I've already begun the process." Simon rushed out, still not daring to hope to that the boss will allow him to leave unscathed.

"Good." The Boss replied simply before returning his attention to an object in his hand, something that Simon only now just catches a glimpse of.

"She is the first true born female werewolf for more than 400 years, we must reach her before her family's enemies do, _he_ needs us to." The boss reminded Simon carefully. "After all, his enemies will want to take his betrothed for themselves. At the least they'll kill her...at worst...well. It doesn't bare thinking about." The boss added.

Not that Simon needed reminding of this fact but Simon also realised that neither the boss or _he_ knew the circumstances in which she changed.

"Er...Sir..." Simon began, his fear at the reaction he knew was coming made him stutter.

"Yes, Simon." The boss replied.

"His betrothed...she...er..." Simon began but lost his voice at the sharp look the boss gave him.

"What is it, Simon." The boss demanded.

Simon couldn't help but back away a little.

"She...she changed because...well. It seems that she was attacked last night...possibly by enemy foot soldiers. They...went to rape her." Simon stammered out terrified.

"WHAT!" He snarled.

But it wasn't the boss who yelled.

It was _him_.


	9. 08: Emotional Bombs

**Chapter 07: Emotional Bomb**

Nobody said anything following Ron's outburst. What could they say? Hermione Granger is related to the most hated teacher at Hogwarts, it just made the mind boggle and boil with confusion. There was no sense to it. How could someone like Hermione be related to Severus Snape?

Suddenly Fred and George exploded into full on belly laughter. Slapping each other on their backs, tears of laughter streaming down their faces. Which caused the others to look at them as if they had went insane.

"Nice one, Professor." George managed to gasp out as he straightened up. "I didn't think you were capable of making a joke." George finished before the laughter died on his and Fred's lips at the sight of Snape's face.

He was dead serious.

"Holy..." Fred murmured in shock.

"But she's muggle born!" Ron said angrily.

Snape glared at the youngest male Weasley not liking his tone at all.

"Well, Weasley. Clearly she was lied to about her parentage." Snape sneered.

Ron paled at the tone in his potion master's voice, nobody except for Mr Weasley had heard him speak in such a dark tone.

"Is...how's Hermione handling it?" Ginny stammered out.

Snape closed his eyes and turned his head.

That would be the question wouldn't it, once Hermione learned of their connection.

"She doesn't know about our blood connection yet, Miss Weasley." Snape replied in a pained voice. "I had only learned of the truth myself just last night." He added.

"Hold on, if Hermione doesn't know that you two are related then...what's the 'unique shock' that she had?" Bill asked, his voice a mixture of concern and confusion.

Snape took a deep breath before answering the best he could without betraying his cousin's unique origins.

"She learned of a inheritance from her biology father." Snape replied.

Both Mr and Mrs Weasley had to appreciate the quickness and altogether accurate description of Hermione's new found werewolf status. After all, once their children learned of the truth, they wouldn't exactly be able to accuse the man of lying.

"But..." Ron began but was cut off by Snape.

"Mr Weasley, while even I have noticed you share the annoying talent of an inquisitive mind as Hermione and Potter do, _please_ do not question me further on the matter. It will be Hermione's decision and her decision _alone_ if she decides to share the details of her inheritance." Snape requested.

He couldn't lie to himself, having to use the word 'please' made him feel like he was choking on the word but for the cousin he had long since believed to be dead. Well, he vowed to do anything and everything to keep her both happy and more importantly safe.

The Weasley family, following his use of the word 'please', were all looking at Snape as though he'd suddenly grown two extra heads.

Mr Weasley was the first to recover.

"Why don't we all sit down and have some breakfast, Severus will you be joining us?" Mr Weasley asked kindly.

Snape stood there in the kitchen for a moment before answering.

"Yes, I think I will. I wish to speak with my cousin when she arrives." Snape replied, once again stunning the Weasley family and leaving the Weasley children to stare at the Potions master with gob-smacked expressions.

And so, for the first time since they had arrived at Grimmauld Place, the Weasley family had breakfast with Severus Snape with them.

It was as the Weasley children and their mother started the process of cleaning out yet another room of the Black family home that Sirius returned through the fireplace in the kitchen Not that anyone other than Snape and Mr Weasley were aware of this fact of course.

"How is she?" Snape asked in a rush.

His worried tone sounded foreign to Sirius' ears but he decided against passing comment.

"As well as can be expected considering everything that happened last night." Sirius began as he dusted himself off. "She'll be in need of of some pain relief and pepper up potions when she arrives. I've seen Remus change hundreds of times but this...I can still hear the echo of the poor girl's bones breaking and changing." Sirius continued, his face paling at the memory.

Snape flinched violently and looked as though he was toying the with the advantages of throwing up.

"McGonagall and Remus will bring her in an hour, she's still...afraid I guess." Sirius continued.

Mr Weasley and Snape both bowed their heads.

"Of course." Mr Weasley replied solemnly. "She's been through one hell of an ordeal and I fear if the wrong people discover her 'inheritance' it will only get worse for her." Mr Weasley continued.

"Not if we have anything to say about it." Sirius stated with cold hard determination.

"For once, I agree with Black." Snape chimed in, but unlike his school enemy, Snape sounded exhausted.

Sirius looked at his childhood enemy for a moment.

"Snape, we might not like each other very much but for Hermione's sake let's at least be civil to each other. She doesn't need the stress of our hatred for each other on top of everything else." Sirius suggested sincerely.

Once again, Snape surprised his audience by nodding in agreement.

"Though I'm not sure how she will take the sudden change in our attitudes." Snape replied.

Sirius merely shrugged at this.

"I'll just tell her that Dumbledore decided to threaten us with a bat bogey hex." Sirius replied casually.

Snape looked at Sirius with a perplexed look.

"Strangely enough, I can actually see him doing that." Snape thought aloud.

Sirius smirked at this reply.

"Knew there was a funny bone in there somewhere." Sirius said smugly.

Snape rolled his eyes at this.

Sirius turned his attention to Mr Weasley.

"What have you told Ron and the others?" He asked.

"They know that Hermione and Severus are related, which was enough to shock them on it's own." Mr Weasley replied.

Sirius nodded, McGonagall had given him and Remus the news of Hermione being Snape's biological cousin while Hermione was in the bath. Hermione certainly knew how to throw people for a loop.

"I dare say Ron's reaction was particularly explosive." Sirius replied "It's his reaction Hermione is most worried about. When Hermione revealed that she had known for sometime about Remus, well, he wasn't exactly up for embracing Remus with open arms. Though, I suspect that had more to do with the fact that he didn't know of my innocence and Remus looked to be helping me." Sirius reasoned.

"I remember," Snape replied darkly, he still hasn't found out why his head throbbed so much when he came too. "and could you enlighten me as to why I had such a pounding headache when I woke up following Potter's spell?" he added with a particular telling look at Sirius.

Sirius merely smiled cheekily and left the kitchen to go and get cleaned up.

Meanwhile back at the Burrow, Hermione was now fully clothed, the Weasley house spotless and Hermione was nervously waiting for Professor McGonagall to escort her to wherever she was supposed to be have been taken last night before the horrifying turn of events. She would be facing the rest of the Weasley family today, and truth be known, she was absolutely terrified. Oh she knew from the way they all treated Remus that they would, hopefully, settle back into their normal behaviour around her but it was Ron's reaction that truly frightened her.

"Get away from me, werewolf!" Ron's angry and disgusted voice rang in her ears.

She closed her tear stricken eyes at the memory, logically Hermione knew that the circumstances were as different as they could possibly be. But this logical fact did nothing to sooth her worries, and Harry? Oh, what would the boy she sees as a brother in every way but blood say to this?

Hermione let out a choked chuckle, she knew _exactly_ how her surrogate brother would react. He would blame himself for not being there, despite that not even Hermione herself had any idea as to her true nature.

"Are you ready Miss Granger?" McGonagall asked her in a soft voice.

Despite it's softness, McGonagall's voice made Hermione jump.

Hermione's eyes looked wide and frightened, so following Remus' instructions, McGonagall raised her hands up in front of her showing that she means no harm.

"Everything will eventually get better, Hermione. While they may not have succeeded, what you have been through is just as horrifying. I promise you, Hermione, those whom truly care for you will _never_ desert you." McGonagall vowed to her.

McGonagall knew that she was crossing the line between student and teacher in leaps and bounds but she didn't care. Hermione was the daughter she had always dreamed of having but never got to raise, but Merlin be damned if she was going to let that stop Minerva McGonagall from caring and loving this young woman the way a mother should.

Before McGonagall could do or say anything else, Hermione barrelled into her and hugged her fiercely tight.

"Hermione...a little...too strong..." McGonagall gasped out before being released instantly.

Hermione now had waterfalls streaming down her face in horror.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..." She gasped and shuddered out.

McGonagall didn't let the rib crushing hug phase her though as she simply wrapped her arms around Hermione's sobbing frame.

"You will find the balance my dear girl, of that I can assure you." The Deputy Headmistress vowed.

Hermione, very carefully, wrapped her arms around her favourite teacher and continued to let the now silent tears fall.

It was only when a throat cleared that the student and teacher broke apart and turned to find a rather sombre looking headmaster before them. His striking blue eyes were missing their normal sparkle.

"Professor Dumbledore? Are you here to tell me I can't come to Hogwarts anymore?" Hermione asked, her head bowed, shoulder sagged and her voice void of emotion.

"No, my dear. I am not here to tell you that you can't come to Hogwarts anymore," Dumbledore told her and Hermione's head shot back up with hope in her eyes. Dumbledore smiled at her sadly. "I am merely here to help escort you to safety. Given last night's events, we decided that every precaution, no matter how extreme they may appear, must be taken." The headmaster told her gently.

When Hermione's head snapped up with hope glistening in her eyes, it made Dumbledore's heart ache. Just as it ached for Remus when he was a young boy whose only desire was to go to Hogwarts and try to be like every other fresh faced student.

"Though, naturally we will have to arrange precautions for you. From what the others have told me you change into your werewolf form when angry or scared for your life, this can change with practice and time but for now. Let's just get you to safety." Dumbledore told her.

Panic exploded in Hermione's stomach.

"W...what if they hate me?" Hermione stammered out.

Remus rushed into the room, McGonagall and Dumbledore noticed that he appeared faster than he had ever appeared in a room before, and hurried to Hermione's side.

"I promise you, just as Minerva has promised you, if they truly care for your well being they will not hate you for being a werewolf." Remus told her softly.

Dumbledore's heart warmed at the paternal loving look on Remus' face and knew that Hermione would be in safe hands with him.

"But I've killed people..." Hermione whispered brokenly.

Remus pulled her into a hug.

"Yes, and I will spend the rest of my life regretting not getting to you sooner." Remus told her, the pain of remorse and guilt clear in his voice.

Despite having killed two people, Hermione could not help but shudder at the thought of what might have happened if she wasn't actually a true werewolf and suddenly she didn't feel all that bad. Especially when she thought about all the other young girls those monsters could have attacked and possibly even killed.

"Are you ready now, little wolf?" Remus asked Hermione before cringing when she gave him a look that clearly said 'too soon for that choice of words'.

"As ready as I'll ever be I guess." Hermione replied and with that the two wolves separated and followed the Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress out into the morning air.

Once the door closed howevere there was the sound of a rather ominous and thunderous crash.

Everyone looked to the door and with Remus being the last out was the one to poke his head through the door.

"Shit...Molly's going to go ballistic." Remus muttered.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, given her knew werewolf abilities she had heard every word Remus spoke.

Closing the door softly as though worried he would set off a bomb he looked from Hermione to the two professors.

"Well...it would seem that...any damage Hermione makes in werewolf form...is not so magically fixed after all." Remus told them nervously.

Three sets of eyes widen in shock.

This was going to create all sorts of problems.

_Grimmauld Place_

The Weasley family, in particular the two youngest children, were pacing back and fourth in the kitchen. Waiting and wondering why Hermione still wasn't at the Order. They had been rather concerned already, or Ron was at least, when they discovered that Hermione was Snape's cousin. But as more time ticks by the more concerned they became. They were all thinking the same thing.

Did You-Know-Who get to Hermione?

This question was immediately followed with the other question they really weren't sure they wanted an answer to. If You-Know-Who _did_ have Hermione, was she even still alive? While Bill, having very few memories of the first war, didn't want Hermione to be dead, he knew that it would be the best outcome for her. Which was also why Bill knew that if You-Know-Who did have Hermione, death would be a very, very long time away. For there was only one way that You-Know-Who would relinquish his hold on Hermione and that would be to have Harry in his hands.

And even in that case, Bill still very much doubted that the soulless monster would grant Hermione the mercy of death.

"Will you two stop pacing! You're driving me mental." Bill snapped suddenly, unlike his four younger siblings who'd seemed to be taking it in turn to pace around the kitchen, Bill had stayed firmly in his chair.

Ron and Ginny mumbled a 'sorry' to their brother before sitting down. Bill closed his eyes and regained some composure.

"No, I'm sorry. I know you two are more afraid about what's happened to Hermione than the rest of us. I shouldn't have snapped at you." Bill replied softly.

Ron looked at his big brother with tears in his eyes.

"I'm scared Bill," he whispered taking in a ragged breath. "what if _he_ has her?" He added. Asking the question the Weasley children really didn't want to know.

"Voldemort doesn't have Hermione, Ron." Sirius replied from the doorway.

The Weasley children jumped before either spinning or glancing round to face Sirius.

"She's being brought here now, with Remus, Dumbledore and McGonagall. They should all be here very shortly." Sirius informed them casually as he aproached the table and sat down.

Eyes went wide at the mention of the Headmaster and McGonagall bringing Hermione. Ron leapt to his feet in a flustered panic.

"Why? What's happened? Did he try to get her?" Ron shot off in quick succession. "Does he know of her connection to Snape and is trying to turn her?" He added.

Sirius threw his hands up in front of himself, eyes wide.

"Whoa...Ron. STOP!" Sirius barked.

Ron closed his mouth but was clearly unable to calm down in anyway.

"Voldemort hasn't tried to get Hermione," Sirius began while ignoring the second flinch at Voldemort's name, "nor does Hermione know that she and Snape are related. But she has had a night from hell last night, so she is going to need every last one of you to be supportive and patient." Sirius told them all, throwing a particularly pointed look at Ron who had looked sheepish.

Everyone knew he wasn't the most patient person in the world, never the less the five Weasley children nodded.

"Okay then, why don't we all just sit down and wait for Hermione to arrive. Snape will be back shortly with some potions for her to take, after that...well. We are all just going to have to follow Hermione's lead with this." Sirius instructed patiently, Ron slowly followed the older man's advice.

The next ten minutes was spent in verbal silence, the only sounds that came from the house were those of Mr and Mrs Weasley joining their children and Sirius in the kitchen. Before eventually Snape joined them.

It was almost midday by the time the front door to Grimmauld Place opened and though he had been itching to race to his best friend's side, Ron forced himself to remain in his seat.

Dumbledore entered first, followed closely by McGonagall and Remus before lastly Hermione entered the kitchen look terrified and deathly pale. While Mrs Weasley had been fully informed of the events that had occurred last night, she couldn't stop the horrified gasp that came out of her. Her children on the other hand, well, now their imaginations were really going for a spin.

Hermione shifted uncomfortably from side to side. What should she do?

"As I am sure you are aware, Hermione has had a rather terrible ordeal. I ask that you do not pester her for explanations and let her tell you, should she wish to, in her own time." Dumbledore told the Weasley children sternly. His blue eyes holding a fiercely stern look that made them all swallow and nod as one.

Dumbledore nodded.

Snape rose to his feet and approached Hermione cautiously, memories of a particular snarling werewolf flashing in his mind.

"Hermione, I..." Snape began before swallowing his nerves down and pulling out some vials from his robes. "I have some pepper up potion and pain relief for you. Should you require them." Snape told her softly.

Hermione's eyes widened, she never would have dared to dream that her potions master would say her given name before. Not to mention saying it without disdain.

"Thank you, Professor." Hermione replied gratefully and taking the potions from him.

"I am afraid that there is one potion though, that I cannot give you. I have done some research and so far it would appear that it isn't safe for you to take." Snape told her.

She didn't need to ask what potion he was referring to and simply whimpered at the memory of the pain she was to forever endure without any help. Remus quickly moved to her side and held her tightly.

"Hermione..." Ron whispered, his face white with fear of the unknown.

Hermione looked at Ron as he stood in between Dumbledore and Snape.

She would never know what made her say it or even why. But at that moment, Hermione took a deep breath and said three of the biggest words anyone could ever say.

"I'm a werewolf." She said softly, but somehow it had seemed to bounce off of the walls of the dark and dingy kitchen.

Ron's eyes went wide before simply collapsing in a dead faint.

"So that's how you stop Ron talking," Fred said with a nervous laugh.

"I always wondered." George added just as nervously.


	10. 09: Avoidance & Dementors

**Chapter 08. Avoidance & Dementors**

Once Ron had been moved into a more comfortable room, the living room, Dumbledore and McGonagall gave Hermione their full support once more before having to bow out as there were school matters to attend to before the new term started. Hermione and the others were fully understanding in this matter, just because they were on the edge of a whole new wizarding war didn't mean that students stopped going to school.

It took a while but when Ron finally came too, Hermione had expected for one of Ron's classic blow outs. But instead of this, the hot-tempered red head simply mumbled about needing to lie down and very quickly made his exit from the kitchen, leaving Hermione to fight off tears. Remus and Sirius on the other hand were growling rather angrily in the young man's wake and Snape was thinking of several potions he could slip into Ron's drink that would make the second youngest of the Weasley family more than a little red faced with embarrassment.

"Hermione..." Ginny began before she was cut off by the very upset new werewolf.

"It's okay, Ginny. I understand if you don't want to be friends anymore." Hermione whispered softly, but her heartbreak was clear to the ears of Remus and Sirius.

"What? Of course I still want to be your friend! Hell you're my sister being a werewolf isn't going to change that!" Ginny cried out in shock before rushing forwards and hugging a rather stunned Hermione tightly.

"Same here, Hermione." Bill repeated firmly and looking rather stern.

"Here, here." Echoed the twins.

Hermione tried desperately not to cry but it was no use, Hermione quickly but very carefully hugged Ginny back and cried. After a few minutes the two girls broke apart, Hermione could not help but say what was on her mind.

"But Ron..." She began.

"He will come around, Hermione. He just needs time to wrap his head around it." Mrs Weasley defended her youngest son.

"Because Hermione has clearly had so much longer to come to terms with being a werewolf." Fred threw out sarcastically.

"Fred." Mrs Weasley snapped.

Fred and the rest of his siblings simply scowled darkly into space while Hermione shifted uncomfortably and decided it was best to change the subject. At least, for the time being.

"Where's Harry?" She asked.

This turned out to be the wrong question to ask as Sirius scowled more darkly than the Weasley children.

"Dumbledore thinks it wise to leave Harry with the muggles for the time being." Sirius answered, his voice just as dark as his scowl.

"What!" Hermione replied stunned and horrified, "And nobody is bothering trying to convince him to change his mind? Mrs Weasley, you know how badly they treat him! Harry would receive better treatment at the hands of You-Know-Who himself." Hermione stated angrily.

"We must trust in Professor Dumbledore, dear." Mrs Weasley merely replied gently.

"Trust in Dumbledore to leave Harry at his Aunt and Uncle's? By the time September 1st rolls around Harry would have been starved to death! You remember what Ron and the twins said, second year they'd put bars on his windows and locked him in his bedroom!" Hermione continued, getting angrier and angrier with each word causing Remus, Sirius and Snape to become increasingly alarmed themselves. But at the mention of his Godson being locked up in his own bedroom quickly distracted Sirius.

"WHAT!" Sirius bellowed turning to glare at Mr & Mrs Weasley causing them to shrink back a little in surprise.

Mrs Weasley looked to start defending herself when Remus suddenly took control.

"Sirius, let us remember that there is a young wolf in the room prone to uncontrollable shifts when her emotions get the better of her. Save this conversation for another time." Remus instructed sternly.

All eyes went to Hermione with concern at this, was she on the verge of changing again?

"I want to see our little bookworm as a wolf!" Fred suddenly spoke sounding like a child wanting his favourite toy.

"Me too! Please change Hermione, please, please..." George whined childishly.

"Boys!" Mrs Weasley scolded but Hermione laughed with a great feeling of warmth and love for the Weasley twins.

At the sound of Hermione laughing, Remus felt a huge weight being lifted off of his shoulders. In a way the twins really were just a flame haired version of James and Sirius, which was just what Hermione needed right now in his opinion.

"Maybe when I have control." Hermione replied sheepishly.

"Fine," the twins replied with a resigned sigh causing Hermione to giggle and three very over protective wizards to sigh in relief as the new wolf calmed down.

"Why don't I show you were you'll be sleeping Hermione, if that's okay with you Professor?" Ginny suddenly spoke up.

Hermione looked to Remus who smiled softly and nodded.

"As long as we keep Hermione as calm as possible everything should be well." Remus replied to Ginny before turning his eyes on the new wolf. "We will have to see about starting your training as soon as possible, though I'm not sure how much use I'll be given that I only turn during a full moon." Remus told Hermione gently.

"Make way for Professor Black then Moony," Sirius replied casually as he walked round the table and throw a supportive arm round Hermione's shoulders. "I'll have you changing on a whim in no time Hermione, least I can do for helping me keep my soul...and my head really." He finished casually.

"Try not to corrupt the child, Black. The last thing Hogwarts needs is a mind like Granger's operating on your low level." Snape told him sneeringly.

Sirius put a hand over his heart and looked wounded.

"Me? Corrupt our favourite book-worm? That's like asking old Voldy to lay down his wand and live with muggles, impossible." Sirius threw back. "But I appreciate that you think me capable of such a thing." He added with a smile.

Hermione backed out of Sirius grasp and looked between her best friend's Godfather and her potions master.

"Okay, what's going on?" She asked through narrowed suspicious eyes.

"Whatever do you mean Miss Granger?" Snape asked in the same bored tone he always used.

"You two, you're being..._nice_ to each other. Sort of." Hermione replied.

"Us? Nice? Me and Snivellus? Did you hit your head last night while you were destroying Molly's kitchen?" Sirius asked, forgetting who was in the room.

"What happened to my kitchen?" Mrs Weasley shrieked.

Hermione, Remus and Sirius all froze on the spot.

"Let's go Hermione," Ginny rushed out before running over to her friend and grapping her by the hand. Hermione needed no extra incentive to run away from the wrath of Molly Weasley and the two girls fled the kitchen, with Bill and the twins hot on their tails.

"Speaking of sleep, perhaps we should get some ourselves Remus old pal." Sirius rushed out with a clap of his hands and rubbing them together. "Been a long night and all, shall we?" He finished before he and Remus both tried to follow suit.

"Don't you two dare move an inch!" Mrs Weasley said darkly.

Arthur Weasley on the other hand was quick to sneak round his angry wife and practically slithered up next to Snape.

"Don't suppose you've got time to show me how to brew a potion I've been having problems with since school?" Arthur whispered.

Snape looked the head of the Weasley family with relief written on his face.

"Lead the way Weasley." Snape replied and the two men left, leaving Sirius and Remus both at the mercy of one Molly Weasley.

Meanwhile back at Hogwarts, where Dumbledore was leaning over a desk overloaded with books, Alastor limped in the office with a curious look on his face.

"How are the Grangers?" Dumbledore asked his old friend without looking up.

"Right now, half terrified half clueless. Tonks has the idea, and I'm inclined to believe it, that Mr & Mrs Granger are victims of one of a rather flimsy oblivate curse." Alastor replied.

Dumbledore looked up at that point and said a word that left Alastor shocked.

"Kiss your mother with that mouth Albus?" Alastor asked shrewdly.

"We best find a way to undo the spell without the risk of destroying their minds and fast." Dumbledore said, completely ignoring Alastor's comment.

Before she knew it, Hermione had been at Grimmauld Place for a whole month. Remus and Sirius were both still being punished by Mrs Weasley for trying to hide the fact that Hermione had accidentally destroyed her kitchen and the young student also noticed that Professor Snape seemed to be spending every available moment in Grimmauld Place. Which granted didn't seem all that strange in itself, but given that the potions master would frequently inquire after Hermione and how she was doing, well...that was certainly out of character. Yet despite this rather puzzling change in attitude towards her, Hermione couldn't deny that she would be forever grateful for him being able to provide potions to grant her dreamless sleeps as opposed to the nightmares that would have otherwise plagued her. But Hermione knew she would not be able to take them forever, sooner or later her body would begin to reject the magical aid of dreamless sleep and the nightmares would return more powerful. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't the nightmares so much that scared her, it was the unknown and highly possible situation of her transforming back into the werewolf and attacking someone she loved that had Hermione so afraid.

A fear that grew with every passing day of failing to control the transformations. What Hermione found the most frustrating was that it wasn't through lack of determination or desire to control the wolf within and found herself venting her frustrations to an understanding Remus one day in the basement were her training was being conducted.

"I just don't understand it, I'm listening to everything Sirius is instructing me to do and I've even read every book that I can get my hands on the subject and yet I'm still not making any progress!" She cried frustrated as she paced round and round the basement as Remus watched on feeling rather helpless.

"I'm all to aware of how much effort you're putting into this Hermione, Padfoot has been given me highly detailed reports on your lessons hoping for advice." Remus confessed.

Hermione stopped and felt her shoulders slump in defeat.

"I'm not going to be able to do this am I." Hermione stated sullenly.

Remus looked at the young wolf and felt his heart break.

"Of course you will, Hermione. This is just one of those things that can't be rushed," he told her softly. "nor does it help that you're putting so much pressure on yourself." Remus tried to reassure her.

"I guess...it's just so frustrating! I can't learn how to control my wolf, I'm lying to Harry and Ron's still avoiding me like I've got the plague!" She rambled off.

Remus's caring face suddenly turned dark.

"Ron is still avoiding you." He stated with a low menacing growl to his words.

Hermione could only nod weakly.

"Excuse me a moment please cub, I have to have a little chat with someone." Remus told her as he slowly got to his feet.

Hermione watched concerned as Remus left the basement and decided to put her newly sharpened hearing to use. Yes she was failing at learning to control how to change form but she had mastered how to endure and use her newly sharpened senses. All of which brought their own respectively high levels of disgust.

"Remus?" Sirius's concerned voice was the first thing Hermione heard.

"What's wrong with him?" She heard Mr Weasley asked.

"Your youngest boy needs a good talking to Arthur." Remus growled.

She wasn't in the room but she could imagined Mr Weasley's rather shocked face staring back at Remus.

"Why?" He asked, his voice confirming the surprise Hermione was picturing.

"He's been avoiding his best friend for a month!" Remus snapped.

Silence greeted Remus's words but it was a very short lived silence.

"I'll go talk to him." Mr Weasley replied, sounding particularly angry to Hermione's ears.

She listened to the sound of Mr Weasley's footsteps heading off to find and talk to Ron, while Remus and Sirius sounded like they were still in the kitchen.

"I can't believe this, I spoke to him only last week and he still hasn't grown the balls to talk to her. It's not like she has the plague," Sirius said to Remus, sounding rather angry at Ron. "actually that would be worse. It would mean he'd willingly avoid his best friend if she was dying." Sirius added as an angry after thought.

Hermione heard Remus sigh.

"I wish I could say I was surprised by this but I'm not." Remus said with a resigned sigh. "Don't look at me like that Padfoot, you were only lurking about in the shadows their third year. Ron went ballistic at Hermione for telling McGonagall about her suspicions that you sent Harry the Firebolt, then there was the business with his _rat_." The older werewolf continued.

Hermione's heart constricted in her chest at the memories, Ron did appear to have a natural habit of being overly cruel to her. Would they have even become friends if it hadn't been for the troll their first year?

"That bad?" Sirius asked with guilt in his voice.

"Worse." Remus stated sounding sad.

Hermione turned her head away from the door not wanting to hear anymore and she knew without having to indulge her need to investigate that she certainly didn't want to hear whatever excuse Ron came out with. She knew that whatever he said would be horrible and hurtful, especially when the only time they were in the same room was at meal times and Ron blatantly refused to look anywhere near her.

The sob ripped through her chest with so much force that it brought her to her knees. She didn't know how long she had been sobbing for, nor did she remember curling up on to the floor, all she knew was that a group of three had arrived and encircled her. One taking her into their arms as she continued to cry.

She cried for the massive lie her life had been until a month ago. She cried for the men that she had killed, even if she had come to partially accept that she had no control over her actions. She cried for the birth parents she was never going to know. But most of all Hermione cried for the fact she had may well just lost one of her best friend's and may well lose the other one. Eventually Hermione cried herself out and just lay in the arms of whoever was holding her.

"We should get Hermione upstairs so she can sleep more comfortably." Sirius's voice said softly.

"Agreed." Snape's voice replied.

Hermione felt herself being lifted into the air and carried but the exhaustion from crying took hold and Hermione fell into a peaceful sleep.

"Hermione! Wake Up!" Ron's urgent voice broke through her sleep.

It took her a while, but after much shoving from Ron and repeatedly calling her name, Hermione drowsily opened her to find Ron looking at her with a look of alarm on his face. Hermione sat bolt up feeling suddenly wide eyed.

"What's happened?" She asked sharply.

"It's Harry...he and his cousin have been attacked by a couple of Dementors." Ron told her half scared half breathlessly, a piece of parchment held loosely in a trembling hand.

Hermione was left speechless.

A crack went off like gunfire throughout Grimmauld Place and Ron lost all colour in his face.


	11. 10: Fears & Discoveries

**Chapter 09. Fears & Discoveries.**

Moody was sitting in the kitchen with the rest of the Order, his magical eye firmly locked on the students. So he saw Ron fly over to his sister and grab a startled Ginny before dragging her out of the room.

"HELP!" Ron bellowed at the top of his voice.

Without hesitating Remus and Sirius both all but flew out of the kitchen and up the stairs. When they reached the landing they saw Ron half dragging half carrying his sister further away from the room.

"Ron! Let go of me!" Ginny demanded.

"Hermione! Changing!" Ron gasped to Remus and Sirius.

Without waiting the two opened the door Sirius threw himself inside changing into his animal form as he went. Remus followed and shut the door behind him; Ginny had since went limp in her brother's arms. A powerful and terrifying howl rang out throughout the house and for once it silenced the portrait of Mrs. Black.

"Upstairs," Ron whispered. "NOW!" He ordered his sister.

Fred and George were waiting for them, both white faced and afraid for their favourite little bookworm. Ron and Ginny hurried inside and the twins wasted no time in shutting the bedroom door and sealing it off with every spell they could think of.

They were all in for a long night.

A week had passed since Ron had woken Hermione to the news that Harry had been attacked by some Dementors near his Aunt & Uncle's home and in that week Hermione had transformed through anger a total number of 12 times and every time returned to human form to find that she had destroyed several rooms of Grimmauld Place. After the third time of destroying the study, Hermione had went to Sirius and apologised profusely for having once again ruined a piece of his family home.

To which Sirius promptly burst out laughing hysterically.

"Hermione, by all means destroy all the rooms you want. In fact, if you can get the old hag off of the wall I might just marry you." Sirius had replied once he had gotten his laughter under control. His comment resulting in a big time blush and a sheepish smile from the young wolf.

In between destroying the Black family home, Hermione had taken to joining the four youngest of the Weasley children and Mrs Weasley in tidying up the place and making it more inhabitable. Though if they were being honest, they were mostly just cleaning up after her wolf's destructive behaviour. Despite spending all her free time with the Weasley children however, there was a great deal of tension between her and Ron. Whom, despite having had lengthy chats with both his parents as well as Sirius, Remus and even Professor Snape, appeared to be determined to ignore her still. With a shake of her head, Hermione returned to the bowl of ice cream she was eating in the kitchen and her thoughts to Harry. Despite the unsettling news of a Dementor attack on Harry and his cousin, Hermione found much to her growing anger that the Order seemed determined to leave Harry where he was. This alone was the course for many of the transformations and destruction of Sirius' home.

At the thought of what looks to be clear abandonment of Harry, her brother in every way but blood, Hermione felt her bones begin to break again. While she had gotten better at containing her screams of pain, she was yet to make any signs of improvement in controlling the transformations altogether. Throwing her chair back, Hermione staggered and stumbled across the kitchen floor and towards the basement.

"Not again..." she whispered to herself through clenched teeth.

Straightening up Hermione gripped the table, her finger nails turning into claws. Her mind trying to think about something else...anything else. Suddenly the memory of last Christmas came to her mind, even though the night hadn't ended on a happy note for the most part she had, had fun. The more she remembered those happy moments the calmer Hermione found that those parts of her that had already shifted were returning to human form. Something, as it turned out, was just as painful as turning into a wolf.

"How the fuck does Remus do this?" Hermione asked herself allowed.

A mock gasp erupts behind Hermione causing her to snap her eyes open and spin round to find Sirius standing there clutching his chest with his right hand.

"By Merlin! Hermione Granger dropping such a word! What would Molly say if she were to hear such talk?" Sirius cried in mock distress, throwing his left arm to his head as though he were a damsel in distress about to faint.

"You fix her kitchen yet?" Hermione asked, not bothering to answer the question. Both of them knew that Molly Weasley was giving Hermione an immense amount of freedom at the moment.

Sirius winced at Hermione's question.

"As a matter of fact we have." Sirius proclaimed happily, "It was actually the work of that bloody poltergeist that was responsible for destruction round two." He added as he sat down at the table.

Hermione sat next to him.

"So what have you been doing of at the Burrow this whole time?" Hermione asked, looking for a distraction what the pain left behind from stopping the transformation.

"Poltergeist has developed a rather Peeves like nature all of a sudden, so Molly's been sending me over there to keep rebuilding the place. To tell you the truth I'm half in mind to take you round in wolf form to sort the little bugger out." Sirius replied honestly.

Hermione giggled at Sirius' plan.

"For now though I've got Kreacher over there making sure there's nothing overly dangerous given that this latest fit effected the twins room." Sirius added, the damn poltergeist really seemed to be taking liberties at the moment with an empty house.

"Sirius, you can't do that!" Hermione stated outraged.

Sirius rolled his eyes at Hermione's never changing attitude towards House Elves.

"I'm not going to get into this with you again, Hermione. So for the sake of your bones and my throat, let's just agree to disagree and leave it at that." Sirius suggested before wincing at his choice of words. "Sorry, that was tactless of me." He added.

Hermione shrugged half heartedly.

"At least you're not ignoring me." Hermione replied sadly, confirming something that Sirius already knew.

"He just needs time to wrap his head around it, not that's any excuse not to check on you of course. Git," Sirius stated.

Hermione took a deep breath and changed the subject.

"When are we going to get Harry?" She asked. "He can't stay there any longer, not after what happened." Hermione pressed.

Sirius's jaw tightened.

"I know, unfortunately Dumbledore is keeping the whole thing very close to his chest. But if Harry's not here by the end of the week I'm going to Private Drive myself." Sirius replied determined.

Hermione looked at him shocked.

"Sirius, you're still a wanted man. You can't just go strolling up Private Drive and demand the Dursleys hand Harry over to you, on the other hand that would work." Hermione began to reprimand before realising that it would in fact work. She had heard from Harry himself say that his aunt and uncle didn't care for him in the slightest. "But that's not the point. The point is you'll end up back in prison and Harry would feel awful!" She finished.

Sirius dropped his shoulders.

"I know...still don't like it though." Sirius agreed feebly.

Hermione gently took Sirius's hand and smiled sympathetically to him.

"If it helps, Harry's family are terrified you'll come up the drive and murder them in their sleep. He may have 'forgotten' to mention that you're innocent." Hermione said with a evil smirk on her face.

Sirius let out a bark of laughter.

"Once the war is over I'll have to pay them a visit then," Sirius replied with a gleeful look on his face.

Hermione giggled at the thought of Sirius turning up at Private Drive and the horrified looks of the Dursley family. Before either of them could say another word however, Ron strolled into kitchen before stopping dead in his tracks at the sight of Hermione sitting there.

"I'll...er..." Ron mumbled before his face flushed and promptly ran back out of the room.

Hermione bowed her head, sadness and shame engulfing her.

"His afraid to be anywhere near me now." She mumbled as tears exploded in her eyes. "I've l...lost m...my b...b...best f...friend..." She sobbed and crumbled into herself.

Sirius, while admittedly uncomfortable at having a crying woman on his hands, rushed out of his seat and to her side. Taking Hermione into his arms and held her as she cried all over his shirt. All the while making a mental note to sort Ron out at the earliest opportunity without making Hermione feel worse than what she already does. Which was going to be all the more difficult with her new found werewolf abilities? There were much of Hermione's true origins that are still unknown, for example would silencing spells work on her hearing? Would she be able to tell the difference between a real persona and someone that is on polyjuice potion? Hearing footsteps approaching, Sirius looked round and found the Weasley twins coming towards the kitchen before freezing at the scene in front of them. The older man watched as the twins expressions darkened and without another word hurried off back the way they came and Sirius knew they were going to go speak with Ron.

"Want to practice transforming some more?" He asked Hermione suddenly, knowing that she will continue to obsess over it until she is able to keep her transformations under control.

Hermione managed a water smile before she visibly paled.

"What's Harry going to say when I tell him?" She suddenly asked her voice barely above a whisper. "I've already lost one best friend...what if this is too much for Harry to handle and I end up losing the only brother I'll ever have?" She continued her voice growing in both volume and hysteria.

Sirius grabbed her by the shoulders and made her look him squarely in the eye.

"I promise you this right now, Hermione Granger. My Godson is every inch his parents. Harry has James's talent for trouble, Lily's compassion and empathy but the one thing he has from both of them is loyalty. So let that be the one thing you will _never_ have to worry about. You're stuck with Harry Potter as a brother for the rest of time." Sirius told her firmly but also gently, resulting in Hermione throwing herself into Sirius's arms and crying with relief.

After patting her on the back for a few moments, Sirius gently pried the crying teenager off of him and gave a smile.

"Now, how about that practice? We can use whatever room in the house that you like, believe me when I say your transformations will be a vast improvement on whatever room you chose." He told her, causing Hermione to giggle.

"How about we just use the basement. Trying to transform at will makes me strangely hungry afterwards." Hermione replied.

Sirius let out a bark of laughter as the two of them got up and headed for the basement.

"WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING TO YOUR BROTHER?" Mrs. Weasley's voice suddenly bellowed out angrily causing Hermione to bend over in pain clutching at her ears and even snarl at the pain caused by Mrs. Weasley's shriek.

Without thinking or ceremony Sirius grabbed Hermione and hurried her into the basement, which he had soundproofed magically for her.

"I'll be right back, I promise." Sirius told her before closing the door.

Hermione was left alone in blissful silence, though she couldn't help but wonder what Fred and George had done to Ron.

Sirius on the other hand didn't have to wait long to find out as he barged into Ron's room, his mother's wailing at his back, and stopped short at the sight. To call it a sickening sight would be an understatement as it would appear the twins had put their legal age status to use. Sirius could also safely say that he may never know what spells had been used on the young man but Sirius now knew to never cross the Weasley twins.

Ever

Once the sight before him had sunk in, Sirius realised that Mrs. Weasley was still very much shrieking.

"MOLLY!" Sirius barked at her in anger, silencing her instantly.

Taking a deep breath, Sirius forced himself to calm down. He wasn't exactly happy with Ron's behaviour lately either after all.

"I know that you're in the middle of parenting your boys at the moment, and far be it from me to intervene this magical moment, but would you mind doing it at a more quiet level. There is after all a new werewolf downstairs with hearing far finer than our own and your shrieking is giving the poor little pup one hell of an earache at the moment." Sirius reminded Mrs. Weasley sternly.

Mrs. Weasley suddenly paled and looked horrified.

"Oh, Hermione. The poor thing...I'm so sorry Sirius, oh and I've gone and woken your mother too. I'm so sorry, I'll go and apologise to Hermione as soon as I'm done here." Mrs Weasley said shamefully while throwing vicious glares at her boys.

"We were only getting back at Ron for Hermione because he's being an even bigger insensitive git than normal." Fred told his Mum angrily.

"Yeah, you've seen how his been behaving lately. He completely ignores her! I mean, I know it's all a bit of shock and everything for the bonehead but he hasn't once stopped to think about how Hermione is dealing with all of this." George added, now fully glaring at Ron and painfully reminding Sirius of the phrase 'if looks could kill'. Ron looked down at his feet under his brothers' glares but Sirius was wondering if it was out of guilt over ignoring Hermione or just from the very menacing looks from his brothers that spoke of a deep passion to actually harm their younger brother. Either way, Sirius was relieved that the glares weren't aimed his way.

"Wait...Ronald you've still been ignoring your best friend?" Mrs Weasley questioned her youngest son in shock, her eyebrows looking as though they're threatening to vanish beneath her hair.

Sirius notices that Ron's ears are now turning red before finally looking up.

"I'm scared of..." Ron admitted, everyone could hear the shame in his voice as he spoke the words.

A pain filled gasp sounds behind them, Sirius closes his eyes as he knew that the gasp belonged to Hermione. Ron's eyes erupt in tears.

"Hermione...I'm sorry...I'm really sorry...It's not that I think you'll hurt me or anything. I know you'll never do that..." Ron tried to explain but Hermione interrupts him

"You just said you're afraid of me! Was that what you were about to say?" She demanded, Sirius spun round and braced himself. If worst came to the worst, Sirius would have to transform and challenge a fifteen year old girl that would become the most dangerous species of werewolf in the magical world. It wasn't something he was looking forward to, especially given he'd already went several rounds with Hermione already, but he was prepared to do it if it meant protecting Hermione from deadly consequences that would break her soul.

"NO!" Ron shouted pain and despair in his voice and suddenly Sirius understood why the young man had been avoiding her. "I could never be afraid of _you, _okay that's not exactly true you scared me long before you became a werewolf, you're wickedly smart you know. I'm afraid _for _you. What if You-Know-Who finds out about you? What if you become so enraged at school that you explode into a werewolf in front of Malfoy? He already has it out for you because you're muggle-born, correction thought you were muggle-born, but if Malfoy finds out he'll more than likely try and kill you or worse enslave you to You-Know-Who's will." Ron babbled out in a rush.

Hermione said nothing but watched Ron wearily, Mrs Weasley was crying while the twins looked at their younger brother like he was the biggest idiot on the planet. So much so that Fred actually smacks the back of Ron's head.

"Idiot" The twins stated as Ron rubbed the back of his head.

Hermione opened her mouth to say something but quickly closed it before turning round and fleeing everyone in the room. Sirius threw a look at Ron that clearly stated he was an idiot.

"Excuse me, duty calls. You and I will be having a little chat later Ronald Weasley." Sirius said simply before hurrying off to talk to Hermione.

"You're such a prat Ron!" Fred spun round and spat at his brother. "Do you realise that this entire time Hermione has been sitting in this house thinking you both hate and fear her!" He continued.

Ron winced at Fred's words as remorse appeared thick and fast on his face.

"Molly," Sirius called softly from the doorway before she could scold her boys. "Albus is here, he needs to talk to Hermione about some things. She asked that you be there." Sirius told the Weasley matriarch softly before heading back downstairs.

"This conversation isn't over Ron," Mrs Weasley told her son before looking at the twins "or for you two." she added before hurrying off after Sirius to find out what Dumbledore wanting to discuss with Hermione.

"Just so I haven't misunderstood, some man dumped me on their doorstep and told them that there was a spell to keep me from changing until either my 21st or this wizard died which appears to be the case. Correct." Hermione repeated what Dumbledore had just told her.

"That is what appears to have happened, my dear." Dumbledore confirmed, causing Hermione to get out of the kitchen chair and pace around the room.

"Appears being the key word here, what or who is to say that they're not lying through their teeth?" Hermione put to the room at large.

Dumbledore looked at the brightest witch of her year with pain in his eyes. Dumbledore was a headmaster whom viewed all his students as his children and he loathed to see any of them in any kind of pain or suffering.

"Have they said anything else?" Mrs Weasley asked the headmaster, her eyes brimming with sadness.

"Not yet but I'm sure Alastor will continue to investigate until he has every last detail of the story." Dumbledore answered, never taking his eyes off of Hermione. "I am sad to say that I must ask a difficult thing of you, Miss Granger." Dumbledore began softly causing Hermione to stop pacing and look at her Headmaster.

"Which is what?" Hermione asked.

"I know that you have every intention of informing Mr Potter as soon as he arrives of the truth of your parentage but..." Dumbledore began but Hermione and Sirius knew exactly where it was going.

"You want Harry kept in the dark about Hermione's parentage." Sirius filled in for him.

Dumbledore nodded.

"Why?" Hermione demanded. "Harry is my best friend, more than that he is my brother in every way but blood." Hermione added angrily.

"Dear I'm sure Professor Dumbledore has his reasons for asking you this." Mrs Weasley told her gently.

"Then it's a reason I deserve to hear if he expects me to lie to my brother." Hermione threw back firmly.

"Forgive my intrusion but I believe a meeting is being held this evening." The voice of Professor Snape sounded in the kitchen, cutting off any further discussion on the matter.

Without another word Hermione turned on her heels and left the kitchen heading to the upper floors where she could stew and hopefully get an answer from Dumbledore before Harry arrived.

Which was hopefully tonight.

"Miss Granger!" Dumbledore called after her, causing Hermione to go back into the kitchen. "There is one more thing I must tell you, something that you need to know and there is no easy way for this news to be broken." Dumbledore began, genuinely afraid of how his student would take the news.

"What is it?" Hermione asked cautiously.

"Since that night I have had members of the Order keeping watch over your childhood home and an hour ago there was a development. A group of men entered your home, Remus identified them all as the same werewolf species as yourself and through his hearing, Remus heard a troubling conversation. One of the men voiced an urgent concern to find you as you are his...betrothed." Dumbledore told Hermione softly.

Betrothed!

Hermione found herself rooted to the spot.

"Oh..." She whispered before collapsing into a dead faint.

Sirius, Snape and Mrs Weasley all but flew across the kitchen to see if she was okay.


End file.
